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THELYPHTHORA;
II
O R,
A TREATISE ON
FEMALE RUIN,
IN ITS
CAUSES, EFFECTS, CONSEQUENCES,
PREVENTION, and REMEDY;
CONSIDERED ON' THE BASIS OF THE
DIVINE LAW:
Under the following HEADS, viz.
MARRIAGE,
W H O R E D O M, and
FORNICATION,
ADULTER Y,
POLYGAMY,
DIVORCE;
With many other INCIDENTAL MATTERS;
PARTICULARLY INCLUDING
An Examination of the Principles and Tendency of
Stat. 26 Geo. II. c. 37.
COMMONLY CALLED
The MARRIAGE ACT.
VOLUME III.
AIA AT20HMIA2 KAI ETftHMlAfc.
2 Cor, vi. 8.
f* Whofoever'attempteth any thing for the public ,'elpecially if it p^r-
te tain to religion, and to the opening and clearing or" the Woslv of
" God) the fame fetteth himfelf upon a ftage, to be
" every evil eyej yea, he cafteth himfelf headlong upon p \red :•_•
" every Jbarp tongue. For he that meddleth with men's religion, in any : .:
" meddleth with their cuflom, nay, with their freehold ; and though the) find
*' no content in that which they have, yet they cannot abide to hear ot
*' altering."
Tra r.jlatort of the Bible. Prefaa to tl .'Reader,
LONDON:
Printed for J. D O D S L E Y
M.DCC.LXXXI,
-i C »"*■ o o
1 y c o &
MEMORANDUM.
<c The grand queflion to be tried is
" Whether a system filled with obligation and
*' refponjibility, of men to women, and of
" women to men, even unto death itfelf,
M and this eftablifhed by infinite wisdom,
" is not better calculated to prevent the ruin
" of the female J ex, with all its horrid ccrnfe-
" quences, both to the public and indivi-
•• duals, than a system of human contrivance,
*< where neither obligation nor refponfibility
«' are to be found, either of men to women,
" or of women to men, in inftances of the
" mod important concern to both, but efpe-
•f cially to the weaker fex ?"
See Vol. i. Pref. xxiii, xxiv,
CONTENTS of VOL, III
PREFACE
* Introdu
ction — - — Page i
CHAP. XII.
Shewing by what Means, and by what De-
grees, the Laws of Jehovah, concerning
Marriage, were oppofed and abrogated, and
a New System invented and ejiablijhed>
by Christian Churchmen — -—4
CHAP. XIII.
Offervaticns on the foregoing — applied to the
Subjects of this Treatife — — 254
CHAP. XIV.
Of the true Origin and Necessity of
Marriage-Ceremonies — 309
Conclusion — 352
Addenda — — — 358
Letter to R. Hill, Efq-, — — 366
ERRATA.
?*&
Omitted Vol.1.
33. 1. zz.fcr antinuptial — read antenuptial,
34. 1. 28. 2d edition, ditto.
97. ill edit. p. 9^. 2d edit, for uxores duas — read dua,
uxores wives two — read two wives.
371. n. I.13. 2d. edit, for filio — read Silic.
Page
20.
128.
129.
184.
213.
293-
294.
33>*
Vol. III.
1. 27. for fons — read fores.
I. 23. tf/*/*r — in an old book — add — of Camden**,
1. 23. for ihi — read Hbi%
1. 19. */?«* granted — add-— where grantable.
n. 1. 1. for that efcaped — read which efcaped.
1. 17. after marriage — add— as in God's light,
1. 4 & 6. ditto,
1. 1$. /er wife — r^</ wife.
t » J
PREFACE
T O T H E
THIRD VOLUME.
THE AUTHOR was in great hopes,
that, when he had finifhed the Second
Volume of this work, his labours were at an
end ; nor had he any intention of carrying
the treatife to any greater length. But, not-
withstanding the clear and plain manner in
which he thought he had laid the feveral
matters therein contained before the Reader,
and on a weight of evidence, which feemed to
carry its own conviction with it — he was
forry to find himfelf not fufficiently under-
Jlood, and that what was charged as error,
and mere human invention, was ftill to be re-
garded in a much more refpedtable light.
The great and interefting quejiion which
was laid before the public for examination and
trial, appeared at the end of the Preface to
vol. I. It was repeated in the fame words,
by way of memorandum, facing the Jirjl page,
vol. II. The reafon of this was, that the
"Reader might be the more eafily induced to
carry in his mind the quejiion which he was
f ol. III. a to
vi PREFACE TO
to try, while he was attending to the evidence
on which it was to be determined.
Inftead of taking the whole of the evidence
together, as applying to the whole of the
quejlion, partial quotations of the wark have
been made and cenfured, and the quejiion it-
felf kept entirely out of fight. This, as far
as the Author has yet feen, has been the me-
thod of oppofition ; therefore he faves him-
felf the trouble of any farther remarks on his
opponents, than to recommend to them a
more ferious and attentive perufal of the
work, than they feem to have hitherto given
it, and to connect the importance of the ques-
tion with the authority of the evidence on
which it is fupported.
The Author has moft evidently taken the
affirmative fide of the quejiion, and flatters
himfelf that he has uniformly purfued it
throughout the whole work 5 nor has he the
leaft notion of changing his opinion, till it
can be proved, that punijhment is an incentive
to the commiffion of crimes — and that a moil
fevere refponjibility for our aciions, tends to
promote a licentioufnefs in our determinations.
Being confcious that nothing but the
love of truth, and a ftrong defire to make
it known, as involving die pre/ervation of his
fellow-creatures, could have ever led him to
the publication of a performance which car-
ries with it fo much oppofition to our whole
fyflem reflecting the commerce of the [exes — and
thinking the affair of too much importance to
be left in doubt as to its original — he not only
3 has
THE THIRD VOLUME, vii
has been at the pains to (hew its unconformity
to the Divine Jyjlem, in the former parts of
this work, but, as a farther proof of that
point, now undertakes to manifeit its deriva-
tion from, and almoft entire and total confor-
mity with, the church of Rome.
He could wifh particularly, that thofe
pious * minifters of the go/pel, who have done
• One of thefe has lately publifhed two volumes of let-
ters, in which 1 find the following excellent advice.
His correfyondent} it feems, was under fome perplexity,
from objections which had been made to the writer's
Cahinian principles, and wThich had induced fomebody to
draw conferences of no very favourable kind to the
writer s plan, fet forth in his printed fermons — the writer
being willing to fatisfy his correfpondent, and to fettle his
mind on the fubject, fends him the letter in queftion,
and, by way of introduction to what he fays, begins
thus — viz.
" In the firft place, I beg you to be upon your guard
" againft a reafoning fpirit. Search the fcriptures ; and
cc where you can find a plain rule or warrant for any
c< praclice, go boldly on, and be not difcou raged becaufe
<c you may not be clearly able to anfwer or reconcile
M every difficulty that may e-irher occur to your own
u mind, or be put in your way hy others. Our hearts
u are very dark and narrow, and the very root of all
" apojlacy is a proud difpofition to queftion the neceffiiy
<c or propriety of divine appointments. But the chile1 -like
cc fimplicity of faith is to follow God without reafining ;
" taking it for granted, a thing miift be right if He di-
" rects it, and charging all feeming inconiiitencies to
<c the account of our oivn ignorance." ,
The part which this worthy and valuable man (for ftieh
I have long known him to be) has taken with refpect to
Thelyphthora, conftrains the Author to remind him of his
own falutary advice, as well as to recommend an obferv-
ance of it to every Reader. It muft be confefled, that it
is much eafier to give advice than to take it. — See Cardi-
fhonia, vol. ii. p. b'6.
a 2 Thdyphthora
viii PREFACE TO
Thelyphthora the honour of publicly preaching
againit it, as well thofe who have red it, as
thofe who have not "for this, it feems, has
made no -f difference) wuuld give this third
volume a very diligent perulal, as it may fave
them the trouble of inventing arguments to
f In a pamphlet which I have feen, publifhed by way
of dialogue between Philalethes and Monogamus — whom
the writer introduces (as Mr. Bayes introduces the Two
Kings cf Brentford fmelling to the fame nofegay) in the
molt perfect harmony and agreement throughout — there
is an anecdote of " a certain minifler, who being afked if
" he had red Thelyphthora, or intended to read it, replied
" in the negative : and being afked what objection he
" had to giving it a reading, he anfwered — He did not
<c chufe to try how much arfenic his conftitution would
cc bear." — " Phil. This anfwer exprefTed a moft judi-
<c cious fentiment, indeed," &c.
Hamlet fays, that " a knavijh fpecch Jleeps in a foolijh
" ear" — and it may be thought, that, if this had been
the cafe with this "judicious anfwer" it would have
been rather more for the credit of this cc certain mi-
" nifter," than to reprefent him as condemning a work,
not only never having red it, but under a fixed determina-
tion never to read it at all. It muft be not a little edifying ,
to hear fo fcrupulous, fo confcientious a divine, preach on
Exod. xxiii. i. — or on Matt. vii. I, 2. — or on that quef-
tion of Nicodemus, John vii. 51.
As for thofe who have red the work, the Public, as well
as the Author, is obliged to them for openly declaring
their fentiments upon it, and for giving their reafons on
which thofe fentiments axe grounded— no caufe can ever
be fairly tried, but by an impartial examination of wit*
nejfes on both fides. How far it may be thought by others,
that Thelyphthora, or any part of it, has met with an an-
fwer, I cannot fay ; but as for the Author himfelf, he
remains — qualis ah incepto — and can only adopt the
words of a learned and reverend correfpondent, who writes
him thus— " All letter-writers and publijhers which I
6 have hitherto red, only, in effect, tell me that your
" book is right.1
elude
THE THIRD VOLUME, ix
elude the force offcripture-teftimony, and qua-
lify them, if they chufe to migrate, for becom-
ing Doctors of the Sorbonne — with a—
dlgnus, dignus est intrare
In nostro docto corpore.
MOLIERE.
One thing, however, may be worth ob-
ferving in this place, which is, that fome
of the mod violent againft Thelyphthora, have
themfelves laid down, in their own comments
on the Bibk9 the very principle on which the
grand argument, which runs throughout the
book, is founded — viz. that of the " obli-
" gation which men are under to marry the
<c women they feduce" — One fays — on
Deut. xxii. 29 — " Seduction of an unmar-
M ried woman was punifhed with a fine to
" the father, and with an obligation to
" marry the woman, without power to di-
<c vorce her." His obfervation on this is,
that — " he who robs a woman of her ho-
" nour, can never make her reparation but
" by taking her for his wife." —
Another thus comments on the fame
paffage — " Happy will it be for that coun-
<c try, in which this divine Jlatute is carried
cc into execution — it will fave many from
" ruin, both of body and foul"
The Author of Thelyphthora very expli-
citly declares, that this " divine sta-
<c tute" includes all men without excep-
tion, as to their being married or not, for
which he appeals to * the words of the
* See vol. i. p. 254—9. 2C* ^itm
Jlatute,
x PREFACE TO
Jlatute itfelf, compared with thofe of ver. 22.
and ver. 25; and afferts, that it was never
repealed. (See vol. i. In trod. p. 10.) And,
furthermore, he would hereby be under-
stood to challenge his adverfaries to prove
the contrary. — One thing is clear, that God
has not repealed it ; and it is equally clear,
that man cannot. — The Author is entirely of
opinion with the laft-mentioned commentator,
that, (e if this divine statute was car-
" ried into* execution, it would fave many
" from ruin, both of body and foul jM and on
this pofition has he ventured his work into
the ivcrld.
It muft be confeffed, that the above com-
ments are fo cautioufly worded, as to leave a
niche 9 as it were, in which may be placed
the word unmarried — "If any unmarried man"
&c. — This has actually been done by fome —
(fee before vol. i. 258. 2d edit.) — but as it
has not been done by the Lawgiver Him-
self — and I am for giving Him credit for
knowing bejl how to exprefs His own mean-
ing— I doubt not, that, if He had had any
other than what appears from the pajfage it-
Jelfzs it ftr.nds, and indeed from the whole
texture of the Jewi/h law. He would not
have left it, either to the Jewish rabbles or
Christian expq/itors, to have made it out
—but have been as particular with regard to
the defcription of the ?nan9 as He is with
refpect to that of the woman.* • ■ I own my-
* How the fpirit and intention of it might, in fome
meafure, be complied with, even in a monotonous coun-
try— fee vol. i. p. 290, and n. 2d edit.
felf
THE THIRD VOLUME. xi
felf to be one of thofe people who defpair of
ever feeing an edition of the Divine Law
auditor & emendatior — or any other plan what-
ibever propofed, equal in wifdom, purity, and
holinefs, or fo nicely and exactly calculated to
preferve the chaflity of women from the vi-
olation to which it is now fubjedted, by an
almoft total irrefponfibility of the men to-
wards them. — For this, we little think our-
felves chiefly, if not wholly, indebted to the
Pope and his clergy — but fo it is, as from the
authentic teftimonies, recorded in the fol-
lowing extracts from their proceedings, will
be made manifeft.
The daring infolence of mortals, in laying
afide the oracles of God, and, in defiance of
the fixed and determinate laws of Heaven,
taking upon themfelves to frame fuch plans,
and to devife fuch fchemes, as fcemed to
them good — making or unmaking marriage,
as in God's fight, jufl as they faw moft
conducive to their own interefl or ambition
— raifing impediments which are unwarrant-
ed by the fcriptures, and inventing ob-
ftacles which oppofe the mind of God as
revealed in thofe fcriptures — vacating
obligation which God hath made, and con-
tinning obligation which God hath vacated
— putting thofe afimder whom He hath joi?ied
together — and joining together thofe whom
He hath put afimder — forbidding to marry
where He has allowed it, and even command-
ed it, and allowing to marry where He has
forbidden it — this, by di/penfing with His
laws
xii PREFACE to the Third Volume.
laws in fome inflances, and rejecting therri
in others — making no Jin where God hath
made it, and making it where God hath
not made it — afluming powers and offices in
God's name, which He hath no where war-
ranted— obfcuring by human rites and ce-
remonies the fimple and clear nature of di-
vine injlitutions — putting human laws in the
place of God's commandments — dealing dif-
trefs, deftru&ion, and ruin among their
fellow-creatures, under colour of God's au-
thority— and, to this end, mifconjlruing and
mi/interpreting the very fcriptures which
were revealed for their prefervation — thus
fee thing the kid in its mother s milk : — all this,
and much more, will be opened to demon-
ftration, in the following extra&s from the
annals of the church of Rome.
It then will evidently appear, by what
means, and by what degrees, marriage, and
every thing belonging to it, has been taken
out of God's hands into the hands of men,
and on what authority that fyftem is built,
which we are accuftomed to think fo highly
of, and, confequently, from whence is de-
rived that fource of female mifery, which
fo loudly calls for redrefs, and of that power
to dejiroy without limitation or reftraint, now
indulged to mankind.
Longa eft injuria, longes
Ambages, feed feumma feequar faftigia rerum.
THELYPH-
/
... :
THELYPHTHOR A.
INTRODUCTION.
PHpHE Apoftle Paul, i Tim. chap. iv.
\_ 1 — 3. foretells many of thofe errors
which afterwards arofe in the Chrijlian
Church, through the feduBion of thofe evil
fpirits, which would poffefs the minds of
men, and lead fome to teach, and others to
follow their pernicious ways. — The Spi-
rit (faith he) fpeaketh exprefsly, \\\2X, fome
JJjall depart from the faith, (i.e. the faith
once delivered to the faints. Jude 3.) And he
inftances one particular among others to
be — Forbidding to Marry, ver. 3.—
thus difannulling the order of God and
Nature, and expofing mankind to all the
temptations and mifchiefs of unchaftity.
Thefe f educing fpirits transformed them-
felves into angels of light, (See 2 Cor. xi. 14.)
and taught the Chrijlians to oppofe and re-
ject the plain and pofitive co?nmand of God,
and, under the deceitful guife of higher
degrees of piety, purity, and holinefs, to
Vol. III. B prefer
[ 2 ]
prefer celibacy and virginity* which God
has not commanded, before marriage, which
He has ordained and commanded, for the
propagation, continuance, and prefervation of
the Human Species.
The precepts and examples of the Hebrew
fcriptures, in which the mind and will of
the Creator were fully revealed, availed
nothing — thefe were thrown afide from
bearing their tejlimony in the matter.— The
writings of the New Teftament afforded
certain paflages, which were wrefted from
their meani?2gs, and diftorted and preffed
into the fervice of error and delujion.
This myjlery of iniquity (See 2 ThefT. ii.
7.) began to work very early ; and in fome
of the earlieft apologies of the Chriflian Fa-
thers, a Jingle life is fpoken of in terms,
which clearly prove the preference which
was given to it in their efteem.
All this was greatly increafed — ev vtg-
vtpivei ■i,6Vo>cAcyw — through the hypocrify of
men fpeaking lyes, [Caftal. in loc] and laid
the foundation of what happened, when,
in after times, Churchmen found it very
highly to their advantage, to make the
world believe, that the antient lazvs of
God, relative to the commerce of the Jexes,
were all antiquated and abolijhed — that
Jesus Christ had introduced an entire
new Jyjlem — and the Pope, as Christ's Vi-
car, was to model that Jyjlem, as He and the
Church fhould think proper.
In order to elucidate and evince this, it
9 (hall
t 3 ]
fhall now be my bufinefs to lay before the
Reader, in a regular feries, the defections
of men from the laws and ordinances of the
Most High, with regard to the above
fubjeCts — by which it will appear, how
evidently we ftand indebted to Romifi
prieftcraft and fuperftition, for almoft every
idea which thzfyjlem of the P rot ejl ants ex-
hibits to us refpeCting matrimony, and all
that concerns it.
I have only to obferve, that the writer,
whom I chiefly follow in the enfuing col-
lections, is Du Pin, who, though a Ro-
manijl, and a doCtor of the Sor bonne, was a
very honeft writer, too much fo for the
Church he lived in; and therefore he was
cenfured, and bitterly perfecuted, at the in-
ftigation of the Bifloop of Meaiix, for fpeaking
his mind fo liberally. The free cenfures
which he pafied on the writings of the an-
cient fathers of the Church — and his avert-
ing the privileges of the national churches
againft the pretentions of the court of Rome
— were fufficient to awaken the thunder of
the church artillery — and to bring on him a
charge of herefy — which ended in a decree
of the parliament of Paris, for the fuppref-
fion of his book.
This is a mode of argumentation which
Churchmen have often had recourfe to, when
tlje craft has keen endangered, and when
writings which have threatened the mala-
die du metier, have appeared before the eyes
of the world.
B2 CHAP.
[ 4 ]
CHAP. XII.
Shewing by what Means, and by what De-
grees, the Laws ^Jehovah, concerning
Marriage, were oppofed and abrogated, and
a New System invented and ejlablijhed,
^Christian Churchmen.
CENTURY I. and II.
Cent. X T Is no eafy matter to lay before the
LandIT: £ Reader, a detail of hiftorical fads, rela-
tive to the tranfadtions of the latter part of
thzjirjl Century, and the beginning of the
fecond, from any of the Ecclefiaftical Hijlo-
ries ; I know of none which were written
at that time; for the works, which bear the
name of Dionyjius the Areopagite, were
forged in the 5th Century, and illuftrated
with annotations by John of Scythopolis in
the 6th. See Mofoeim, vol. i. p. 298, 408.
note u. Macl. edit.
The firft teftimony, therefore, with which
I fhall begin, is of the epiftolary kind, and
this, under the hand of Clemens Bifhop of
Rome. At the end of JVetJleiris New Tef-
tament, vol. ii. are to be found two epif-
tles of " St. Clement the Roman, difciple of
" St. Peter, taken from the book of the Sy-
<( riac MS. of the New Teftament." Wet-
Jlein, in order to prove they are genuine,
cites two teftimonies, one of St. Jerome,
the other of Epiphanius; the firft of which,
c. Jovinian,
<c
<c
[ 5 1
C. Jovinian, lib. i. writes thus — " Hi Cent.
funt eunuchi, quqs caftravit, non necef- I.andIL
fitas, fed voluntas propter regnum cae-
lorum. Ad hos & Clemens fucceffor Apof-
t oli Petri, cujus Paulus Apojlolus memi-
" nit (Phil. iv. 3.) fcribit epijlolas, om-
** nemque penefermonem fuum de virgini-
" tatis puritate contexuit, & deinceps mul-
fl ti Apqftolici & Martyres, & illuftres tarn
" fanclitate quam eloquentia, quos ex pro-
" priis fcriptis nolle perfacile eft."
" Thefe are eunuchs, which, not necef-
" fity, but their own will, hath cajlrated
" for the kingdom of heaven. To thefe
" Clement, the fucceffor of the apoftle
" Peter y (of whom the apoftle Paul makes
" mention Phil. iv. 3.) writes epiftles, and
*l almoft his whole difcourfe relates to the
M purity of virginity. After that, many
*' apoflolical men and martyrs^ and illuftrious
" as well for fandtity as eloquence, whom
" it is very eafy to know from their own
" writings, did the fame."
pjpiphanius, (Haeres. 30. of the E&ionites,
n. 15.) fays, " That Clement taught virgi-
" nity, in all the circular epiftles which he
" wrote, and which were red in the
" Churches."
The epiftles themfelves appear in Syriac,
with a Latin tranflation; by which it feems
evident, that this faint was as great an
advocate for virginity as Jerome was him-
felf.
Clement fays, — " Whofoever profefleth
B 3 " before
C 6 ]
Cent. " before the Lord, that he will preferve
I«an4IL a his chajlity, ought to be girt with every
" holy virtue; and if indeed he hath
u crucified his body for the fake of piety,
" he prays againft the Word, which faith—
" INCREASE AND MULTIPLY, and the
** whole mind, and cogitation, andconcu-
" pifcenceof this world/' &c. — and after-
" wards — For he who delires for himfelf
M thefe great and excellent things, on that
" account is difcharged, and feparates him-
" felf, from the whole world, that he may
" go away, and live a divine and heavenly
" life, like the holy angels" &c. " On
€C this account he feparates himfelf from
M all the deiires of the body, and not only
M prays againft that — " Be fruitful
" and multiply" — but delires that
<l hope, promifed, prepared, and placed in
" heaven with God, who promifed with
€< his mouth and lyeth not, who is greater
'* than Jons and daughters, and will give
" to virgins a famous place in the houfe
" of God, more excellent than forts and
fC daughters , and more excellent than to
" thofe who were yoked together in holi-
" nefs, and who are not polluted by their
* ' matrimonial inter courfe.' '
A deal more of fuch impious piety is to
be found in other parts of thefe epijiles ;
but thefe quotations may ferve to fhew,
how very early it became a fafhion, in the
Chrifiian church, to put imagination in the
place of fcripture, and to invent fchemes
of
[ 7 ]
offanfiity, which directly militated again ft Cent.
the will and word of God, as revealed in I,andI1,
the holy fcripture.
What God had honoured with Kis pri-
mary bleffing (Gen. i. 28.) they were to
deprecate- — what he commanded they were
to avoid— and, in fhort, it feems as if
the way to be thoroughly holy, was to
counteract all that God had done and faid
upon the fubjecl of marriage, by every me-
thod they poffibly could, even to the
M avoiding the fpeech and fociety of the
" other feXy as the contagion of a plague"
How this foundation was built upon in
later times, the fequel will very fufficiently
fhew.
If the reader will turn to If. lvi. 4, 5.
which is the fcripture alluded to in the
latter part of the above quotation, he will
fee how the word of God could be per-
verted and abufed, to anfwer the purpofes
of thefe delulions.
As for the genuinenefs of thefe two epif
ties, the reader may find what is faid on
that fubject by Wetjlein, vol. ii. N. T. Pro-
leg, at the end of the volume ; who feems
to entertain little doubt of the matter.
Eusebius Pamphilus, Bifhop of Cce-
farea in Paleftine, a writer of the fourth
century, whom Mofjeim fpeaks of, as " a
" man juftly famous for his profound
" knowledge of ecclefaftical hiflory,"
(Mofh. vol. i. p. 186.) has left us an hif-
tory of the church 3 and in that part of it
B 4 which
Cent.
Lind II.
[ 8 1
which relates to the above period, he
tells us (B. 3. c. 29.) that — " at this
" time the herefy called the herefy of the
" Nicholaites, continued a very fhort time;
"'of which alfo the Revelation of John
" makes mention. Thefe boafted of iV/-
" cholas (one of the deacons, who, toge-
" ther with Stephen, were ordained by the
11 apoftles to minifter to the poor) as the
" author of their feci. " Eufebius then cites
Clemens Alexandrinus, who flourished about
the year 192, as a voucher for the follow-
ing ftory, which he profeffes to tranfcribe
from Clemens, word for word. — He (i. e.
Nicholas the deacon) they fay, having a
beautiful wife, being, after our Sa-
viour's afcenfion, blamed for his jea-
loufy by the apoftles, brought his wife
forth, and permitted her to marry
whom flie had a mind to, faying — hi
7rcipz,%pcLG§zi T/i (TXpKi — that we ought to
abufe the fteftj. Thofe therefore who
follow his herefy, fimply and rafhly
affenting to this faying, and imitating
this deed, do moil impudently give
themfelves over to fornication. But I am
given to underftand that Nicholas made
ufe of no other woman, befides her he
married ; and that thofe of his children
which were daughters, remained virgins
when they wrere old; and his fon con-
tinued *un defiled by women. Which
thiirgs being thus, his bringing his
a^ '(over whom he is faid to be jealous )
" to
((
i 9 3
" to the apojlles, was a fign of his reject- Cent,
" ing and bridling his paffion ; and by ^andI1;
" thofe words of his, that we ought to
" abufe the jlefo, he taught continence, and
" an abftaining from thofe pleafures,
" which are with fo much earneftnefs
" defired by men. For, I fuppofe, he
<c would not, according to our Saviour's
cc commandment, ferve two majlers — Plea-
u Aire and the Lord.
" Moreover they fay„ that Matthias
taught the fame doctrine, that we mould
war againft the flefh, and abufe it, al-
** lowing it nothing of pleafure ; but that
*' we mould enrich the foul with faith
u and knowledge.
" But Clemens, whofe words we have
" even now cited, after that paffage of his
" before quoted (faith EufebiusJ does
" reckon up thofe apojiles that are found
to have been married, upon account of
fuch as deipife marriage, faying, what
" will they reprehend even the apoftles
w alfo r
Now though there are hiftorical facts
recorded by this Clemens, as well as by
Eufebius himfelf, which deferve about as
much credit as Mother Goofes Tales *, yet
. it
* Among others, that fooiifh flory of a devil, that
had taken up his refidence at Rome, to whom Simon
Magus went when Peter had preached him* out of
Judea, and by the afliftance of this devil, Simon pre-
vailed
a
[ io ]
Cent, it is eafy to perceive, that marriage itfelf
*-andH* fell into great difrepute among the very
early C 'hri/lians \ — and Dr. Cave, as has been
already noticed, (fee Thelyph. vol. ii. p. 1 20.
1 ft edit. p. 112. 2d edit.) has collected evi-
dence enough of this faft, to leave it with-
out a doubt.
This Clemens of Alexandria, whatever
he might write on behalf of marriage it-
felf, did not approve of fecond marriages.
Du Pin, who reckons Clemens among the
writers of the third century, fays, that
though he does not entirely co?idemn fecond
marriages, yet he blames them ; that he
held the dczmons to have finned through in-
contijience ; that it is not lawful to many,
but with a defign of begetting children.
The learned Bifhop Newton, in his
Ingenious and edifying " DifTertations on
u the Prophecies/' (vol. ii. p. 443.) ob-
ferves from Theodoret, who was a writer
of the fifth century (fee Mofheim, vol. i. 246.
Edit. Macl.) that " Saturninus or Satur-
" nilus, who fiourifhed (early) in the fe-
" cond century, was the iirft Chri/lian
** who declared matrimony to be the doc-
vailed on the inhabitants of Rome to fet up an image
to him, and worfhip him as God. But on Peter's
following Simon to Rome, and preaching there, Simon
and his familiar were filenced, his power extinct, and
the man himfelf deftroyed.
Another fooliih fiery Eufebius cites out of Clemens
lexandrihus, of Peter's wife fuffering martyrdom,
and of the converfation between Peter and her on the
: cafion.
<( tri?ie
[ II ]
xe trine of the Devil. But according to Csnt.
" Irenaus and Eufebius, Tatian9 who had **andI*;
" been a difciple of Jujlin Martyr y was
" the firft author of this herefy ; at lead
t€ he concurred in opinion with Satur-
* ninus and Marcion, and their followers
" were called Encratites — Continents—-
" from their continence with regard to mar-
" riage and meats.
" The Gnojiics likewife, as Irenceus
** and Clemens Alexandrinus inform us, af-
" ferted, that to marry and beget children
" proceeded from the devil; and, under
" pretence of continence, were impious
" both againft the Creature and the Cre-
€C a tor, teaching that men ought not
" to bring into the world others, who
" would be unhappy, nor fupply food for
« Deat.br
Tertullian
Abfolutely condemns fecond marriages,
as being adultery — as did the whole feet
of the Montanijls. This father apologizes
for the contempt of marriage among the
early Cbrijlians, from their apprehenfion
that the end of the world was near, and
that this circumitance vacated the neceffity
of begetting children. See before, Tbe/ypb.
Vol. i. p. 170. 2d edit. n.
Athenagoras
Commends virginity — condemns fecond
marriages, calling them honeft adultery.
GEN*
12
Csnt. CENTURY III.
Hi. _
Minutius Felix
Says — The Chrijlians commonly marry
but once, and that they have no other defign
in their marriage, but the having of chil-
dren.
Origen.
The violence which this father did on
himfelf is well known -, — he was much
blamed for it in general — but, Deme-
trius, bifhop of Alexandria, commended
his zeal, and the fervency of his faith, and
bid him not be difcouraged on that ac-
count. In his time they did not admit
perfons that were twice married into holy
orders.
He fays, we ought not to make ufe of
marriage, but * only for the fake of having
children. He at laft fell into many errors
and ftrange opinions — and there were dis-
putes in the church whether he was faved
or damned: — much it fignifies to him,
which way the difputants determined the
queftion.
Cyprian,
Who, when he was a Catechumen, re-
folved on continency, fays much of the
* Compare i Cor. vii. 4, 5,
great
[ *3 ]
great advantages of virginity, that it was Cent.
the neareft flate to that oi martyrdom; that HI.
virginity is not of abfolute neceflity, but a
great deal more excellent than marriage—
and defires the virgins to remember him
when they receive the recompence of their
virginity — "Words," hysDuPin, "which
V make it appear, that, in St. Cyprians
" time, they believed that the faints in-
•* terceded for us before God."
The book of the celibacy of the clergy is
extremely ufeful (fays Du Pin. J In it he
proves, that churchmen ought not to live
with women.
Methodius,
Bifhop of Olympus, and afterwards of
Tyre, who, in a book intituled the Banquet
of Virgins, has given as much pious non-
ienfe on the fubjedt of virginity, and its
preference to marriage, as almoft all the
preceding fathers put together.
In Du Pin's fummary of the difcipline
of the i^d century, he fays, that it was law-
ful for priefts to keep the wives they mar-
ried before they were ordained, but mar-
riage was never permitted after ordination ;
but both the one and the other was al-
lowed to deacons. Monks were not as yet
inftituted; but there were abundance of
perfons of both fexes among the Chrijlians,
that lived in a ftate of celibacy, and chear-
fully fubmitted to the auiterities of an
aicetic life. There were like wife fome
women,
[ 14 ]
Cbvt. women, in the third age of the church,
that folemnly obliged themfelves to keep
their virginity all their life-time.
Cent. CENTURY IV.
IV.
«.
For an account of the Emperor Con-
stantine's encouragement of celibacy,
fee before, Thelypb. vol. ii. 281. n. ift edit.
252. n. 2d edit.
Eusebius of Cafarea,
Praifes the ftate of virginity as more
perfect, and the celibacy of priefts, with-
out blaming marriage.
Athanasius,
In a letter to Amnion the monk, refutes
the error of fome, who condemned the
ufe of marriage, and fhews, from fcrip-
ture, that it is permitted, and that it is im-
piety to condemn it, though virginity is a
more perfect ftate, and- de/erves greater re-
wards.
Hilary,
In his commentary on Pfalm cxix. ob-
ierves, that celibacy is more perfect than a
ftate of marriage.
He approves of vows, and invocation of
faints, and praifes celibacy.
Didymus of Alexandria,
Of whom St. Jerome was a difciple — •
teaches,
[ *5 1
teaches, that the ufe of marriage, though Cent,
it is permitted, is called Jin in comparifon IV-
of virginity, which is a much more excel-
lent ftate.
Cyril of Jerufalem,
Takes notice that virginity is the more
perfedt ftate, but that married perfons may
hope for falvation, provided they ufe mar-
riage aright. That their intention fhould
not be to fatisfy a brutal paffion, but to '
have children. That we ought not to con-
demn even thofe who proceed to fecond
marriages ; and that this weaknefs fhould be
pardoned in thofe who ftand in need of
this remedy to avoid fornication,
St. Ephraim of Syria,
Anfwered one of his monks, who afked
him, who they were that might ufe that
liberty which St. Paul gives to marry, ra-
ther than to burn ? that it concerns only
thofe who are not bound, and who live in
the world, but not thofe who have re-
nounced the world, and embraced a reli-
gious life.
He has a treatife, to fhew the excellen-
cies of a monaftic life above the fecular.
St. Basil of Cafarea,
Was the firft founder of a monaftic life
in Pontus and Cappadocia. He taught, that
there are many things forbidden m the Gof-
pel which the Law permitted -, that the paf-
fage
[ 16 I
Cent, i'dge of GeneJiSy " Increafe and multiply*
IV- does not refped: the * New Tejlament. He
obferves, that fecond marriages are a re-
medy againft fornication, and not an inlet
to immoderate lufh ; but he condemns
third marriages as a kind of fornication ,
and fays that the cuftom of the church
was to excommunicate thofe who married a
third time, for Jive years — that, in other
places, they were only put under penance
for two or three years. He enjoins the
fame thing to bigamijis, for one or two
years : though he would have neither the
one nor the other reduced to the loweft
penance — that they fhould be in the firft
years in the rank of hearers — the laft years
they fhould partake of the prayers —
though they were ftill excluded from the
participation of the eucharijt 'till their
penance was finifhed, and they had given
figns of their converlion.
Can. 12. He declares, that the canons
wholly exclude all bigamijis from ecclefi-
aftical functions.
* The reader may have obferved before, p. 6.
how early the Chrlftian fathers began to break ground
for a fiege againft the Old Teftament, with refpect
to marriage. Here the trenches are fairly opened ;—
as we proceed, we fhall find the befiegers very active
— and that when the Pope and his clergy could bring
the heavy artillery of their canons and decrees to bear,
they played upon it 'till they left little elfe (landing,
befide its impregnable tefiimony againft their wicked
contempt of the divine law.
Can,
r n ]
Can. 18. St. Bajil obferves, that the Cent*.
antients did not treat the virgins confe- *v-
crated to God, who abandoned their pro-
fefiion, more rigoroully than bigamifts ;
they impofcd only a penance of one year :
but he adds, that the church, and the num-
ber of virgins, increafing every day, they
fhould be treated as adulterers.
Can. 19. He obferves, that men make
no vow nor profefiion of virginity, as vir-
gins do ; that thofe who enter into a mo-
naftical flate feem tacitly to embrace celi-
bacy ; but, to oblige them to it, it was ne-
ceflary they fhould be afked, and that they
fhould make profefiion, and then if they
fhould pafs to a voluptuous life, they
fhould be punifhed as fornicators.
Can. 24. ils againft widows, who, being
deaconefes, married afterwards. He would
have them more feverely punifhed than
bigamijls, if they be above 60 years old.
He excufes them if they be younger, be-
caufe it was the bifhop's fault to receive
them too young.
By Can. 25. It is provided, that he
who fhall marry a woman after he hath
abufed her, ihall be put under penance, but
he fhall have leave to keep her for his
wrife. N. B. The law of God pofitively
fays, Jhe foall be his wife. See Exod.
xxii, 16. Deut. xxii. 28, 29.
In Can. 26. He declares that fornication
is never marriage, and that it cannot law-
fully be the beginning of marriage ; and
Vol. II L C therefore
[ i8 ]
Ce^t- therefore it would be better to part thofc
, ^ who have committed this fin, than to
marry them together ; but yet, if they have
a mind to marry, they mould not be hin-
dered, left fome greater mifchief fhould
follow.
Qu ? If by fornication this father means,
the coming together without the rites of
the church — how doth this canon agree
with the fcriptures above referred to?
Can. 40. A flave, who marries without
confent of his mailer, has committed for-
nication, his marriage being void.
Can. 50. The laws do not forbid nor
punifh third marriages, and yet the church
looks upon them as Jhameful actions.
The treatife of true virginity, contains
many precepts for preferving virginity. In
it he extols very much the ftate of virgins,
&c. There are in this treatife fome paffages
which may offend nice ears; but it is to be
confidered (fays Du Pin) it is addreffed to
a bimop, and not to the virgins themfelves.
But qu. ? If the virgins did not read or hear
it, how were they to be the better for it ?
This father fays much of a law of Jesus
Christ — and of the morality of Jesus
Christ — and feems to be one of thofe,
who laid a foundation for feparating the
Old Teftament from the New, by making
Christ a new lawgiver, and a teacher of
a new fyftem of morality, independently of
the law of Mofes.
Sr.
[ *9 ]
St. Gregory Nazianzen Cent.
IV.
Says, that marriage is commendable,
where the parties are contracted with a de-
fign of having children ; but he prefers
virginity to marriage.
In his poem in praife of virginity, he
handles, with much wit and eloquence,
the quefiion about the pre-eminence of ce-
libacy above marriage — he then brings in
married per fo?is, and thofe who obferve ce-
libacy, fpeaking for both their opinions ;
each of them fays all that can be faid in
favour of their ftate, but the latter have
the better.
St. Gregory Nyssen
Wrote a treatife on virginity, wherein
he defcribes the advantages of virginity*
and the inconveniences of marriage.
This father fpeaks out about a new law
and an old law, and feems to leave the latter
out of the quefhion. " Sacrilege" fays he,
" was punifhed under the eld law, by
" ftoning to death — yet this punifhment
" was mitigated under the new law, and
" now facriiegious perfons are treated lefs
" hardily than adulterers"
There is a paffage in this fathers writ-
ings, which mews how little regard they
paid to the moral law7 of the Old Tefta-
ment. — " Though the fcripture M (faith
he) " reproves all fins feverely, yet the
C 2 "fathers"
[ 20 ]
Cent, "fathers" (u c. of the Chriftian church)
. ' " have made no laws but againft murder"
He impofes twenty-feven years penance
for wilful murder, and for involun-
tary murders the fame fpace of time as for
fornication, yet he allows " this penance to
" be diminished according to the fervor of
" the penitent."
So that God's law, Gen. ix. 6. was
quite laid afide. A ftrong inftance this,
of the fmall attention they paid to the
Old Tejiament in forming their fyftems.
Timothy of Alexandria
Would have perfons that are married,
abftain from the ufe of marriage Saturday
and Sunday, that they may be capable of
receiving the holy communion.
Siricius, Pope of Rome, anno 385,
Can. 7th. He declares, that every clergy-
man who (hall marry a fecond wife, or a
widow, mall be turned out of holy orders,
and reduced to lay communion. And he
declares, that if for the future any bijhop,
prieft, or deacon, fhall not continue unmar-
ried, he is to hope for no more pardon ;
becaufe it was necefTary to cut off, with
the knife, thofe fons which could not be
cured by other remedies.
The 8th Can. is againft thofe who get
themfelves ordained after they have had
feveral wives.
Can. 9.
[ 21 ]
Can. 9. Says, that a man may be an Cent.
acolyth or fubdeacon, provided that he mar- . , -
ries but once, and then does not marry a
widow. That, after, he fhould be ordained
deacon, if he obliges himfelf to live un-
married.
St. Ambrose, Bifhop of Milan,
Wrote three books in praife of virginity.
In which he treats at large on the excel-
lency of virginity. He fhews that this
virtue came from heaven, that God is the
author of it, that the Heathens neither
knew it, nor praclifed it as they ought ;
that the Jews themfelves did not efteem
it, and that it was not common among
men 'till Jesus Christ came into the
world. Afterwards he gives a catalogue of
the advantages which virginity has above
the marriage-ftate. " I do not condemn
" marriage,'' (fays he) " but I will prove
M that virginity is more excellent ;" — and
then fays all he can to frighten women
from marrying. — He reproves mothers
who hindered their daughters from com-
ing to hear him, left they fhould embrace
virginity, and commends thofe virgins who
devoted themfelves to God without their
parents leave.
He wrote aJfo a treatife of widows^
wherein he exalts the ftate of widows \ who
do not marry again, as approaching near to
the perfection of 'virgins. He does not abfo-
C 3 lutely
C *2 ]
Cent. lutely condemn either firji or fecond mar-
' riages, but he prefers the flare of virgins
and widows before that of married women.
He complains that there were few at
Milan, who profited by his in ft ructions ;
whiiil a great many virgins, not only from
Bologna and Placentia, but from Mauri-
tania, came to receive the veil at Milan.
St. Epiphanius
Praifes virginity, but does not condemn
marriage, nor yet fecond marriages ; but de-
clares plainly, that the church does not ad-
mit any to holy orders, but fuch as obferve
celibacy, and that (he excludes bigamijls.
He confefles, that there are ftill fome
places where the deacons and fub- deacons do
not. observe celibacy, but adds, — " This is
" done upon fufferance, becaufe of the
" weaknefs of men, or the multitude of
" people." Laftlv, he fays, (i It is a great
" fin to violate the vow of virginity. iy
«
Having briefly extracted fome opinions of
the Fathers, I will now lay before the
reader, the wijdom of fome of the Councils.
Council of Eliberis, anno 305.
Can. 7th. Thofe that relapfe into adul-
tery, after they have undergone penance>
iQjall not be received even at death.
Can, 8th. Subjects a woman to the
fame
[ 23 ]
fame penalty, who has forfaken her huf- Cent.
band, without caufe, to marry another. - 1»
Can. 14. Treats virgins with much
moderation, who have loft their virginity :
if they marry thofe who have abufed them,
they are reftored to. communion at the end
of one year, without being obliged to do
penance ; but impofes^/fo^ years penance if
they had to do with other men.
Can. 19. Ordains, that communion
fhall be refuted, even at the point of death,
to bifoops, priejis9 and deacons, who have
committed adultery.
Can. 61. Impofes penance of five years
upon him that marries his wife's Jijier,
unlefs the extremity of ficknefs oblige
us to give him the peace of the church
fooner.
Can. 65. If a clergyman knows that
his wife commits adultery, and fends her
not away, he is unworthy of the commu-
nion of the church, even at the point of
death. N. B. This canon is an authentic
evidence of the marriage of the clergy in
the church of Spain at this time.
Can. 69. Impofes but five years pe-
nance on thofe who have fallen but once
into the fin of adultery.
Can. 70. If a woman commit adultery
with the confent of her hufband, he is un-
worthy of the communion at the point of
death ; but if he divorces her, he may be
received after ten years penance.
C 4 Can. 78,
C 24 ]
iyT' Can. 78. Impofes on him who com-
— mits adultery with a Pagan or Jewijb
woman, a penance of /£r^ years, if he
confefles his crime, but of Jive years if de-
tected by the teftimony of others.
Council of Arles, anno 314.
Can. 10. Thofe who find their wives
in the act of adultery, muft be counfelled
not to marry others, though the law per-
mits them to do it. — Bravo!
Council of Ancyra and Neo-C^sarea,
anno 314.
There are twenty-five canons of the
Council of Ancyra. — The 10th concerns
the celibacy of deacons. If they declared,
at the time of their ordination, that they
wTould marry, they mail not be deprived
of their function if they did marry ; but
if ordained without making this declara-
tion, and afterwards married, they mould
be obliged to quit their employment.
Can. j 6 and 17. Impofes long penan-
ces on thofe who have committed crimes
contrary to nature. See Lev. xx. 13.
Can. 20. Impofes Jeven years penance
for adultery. See Lev. xx. 10.
Can. 21. The fynod obferves, that the
antient canons delayed the abfolution of
thofe women, who, having committed the
ini of adultery, murdered their infants, 'ti'U
death :
[ «5 ]
death ; but, to mitigate this punifhment,. Cent*
it impofes upon them only ten years pe- *v«
nance. Note, For adultery and child -murder!
N.B. The canons of this council are
figned by eighteen bifhops. Br avi Tutti.
Neo-C^ssarea.
Can. i. If a priejl marries after he has.
been ordained, he ought to be degraded. —
If he commit fornication or adultery, he
ought to be punifhed more rigoroufly, and
put under penance.
Can. 3. The time of penance of thofe
who marry often, is regulated by the canons,
but it may be fhortened proportionably to
the converfion of the penitent, and the fer-
vour of his penance.
Can. 7. Forbids priejis to be prefent at
the marriage of bigamijls.
Can. 8. He cannot be admitted into
holy orders, whofe wife has been con-
victed of adultery.
Can. 9. If a priejl who has committed
the fin of the fejh before ordination, con»
fefs his crime, he ought no more to offer,
but he fhall enjoy all his other rights : for
as to other fins, 'tis thought, that they are
pardoned by the impofition of hands. But
if he does not confefs his crime, and can-
not be convicted of it, he (hall be left to
his own conference.
Can. 10. A deacon committing the
fame crime before his ordination, fhall be
placed in the rank of the other minifters.
Council
[ 26 3
jyT* Council of Nice, anno 325.
This was called an Oecumenical — /. e. —
a council of the whole world, becaufe it
was called together by the emperor Con-
Jlantine from all parts of the Roman em-
pire, and was compofed of the eajlern and
weft em bifnops.
Can. 3. Forbids bijloopsy pricfts, and dea-
cons, and other clergymen, to keep women
in the houfe with them , yet it excepts
mothers, lifters, and other perfons of whom
there could be no bad fufpicion. N. B. No-
thing is faid of wives.
In this council a canon was propofed for
obliging bifhops, priejls, and deacons, who
were married before ordination, to obferve
celibacy ; but Paphnutius, a venerable con-
feffor and prelate, withftood this, and
brought the council to confent, that every
one Ihould be left to their liberty, and
need not abftain from their wives unlefs
they were willing fo to do. See Jortin
Rem. vol. ii. p. 249*
Council of Laodicea, between 360, 370,
Can. 44. Women ought not to come
near the altar.
Can. 52. That marriages Ihould not be
celebrated in Lent.
Council of Valence, anno 374.
Can. 1. Thofe are not to be ordained
who have been twice married, or thofe wlp
hive
[ 27 ]
have efpoufed a widow, whether they did Ce^t-
it before or fince their baptifm : but they '
do not intermeddle with the ordinations of
bigamijh made before their decifion, left
they mould difturb the church.
Can. 2. Penance fhall not be allowed
immediately to thofe virgins who married
after they had made a vow of virginity,
and they (hall not be received until they
have made full fatisfaclion.
Council of Saragosa, anno 381.
Can. 8. Forbids virgins, that are de-
voted to Jesus Christ, to be veiVd, ex-
cept they be forty years of age.
Councils of Rome and of Milan againft
Jovinian, anno 390.
Though we ought not to defpife mar-
riage, yet virgins are more to be honoured.
Their fecond letter contains proofs of thefe
truths ; and it is fhewn, that the BlefTed
Virgin loft not her virginity by bringing
forth Jesus Christ into the world.
Firft Council of Carthage, anno 348.
Can. 2. Forbids thofe perfons who
profefs virginity, to cohabit or to have fa-
miliarity with any perfons of the other fex,
under pain of excommunication for the laity,
and of depofition for the clergy.
Can. 4. Contains the fame prohibi-
tion to widows.
Councils
[ 23 ]
Cent. Councils of Carthage, anno 397.
~~ — - — Can. 4. Forbids the confecration of
virgins before the age of twenty-five years.
Can. 17. Forbids clergymen to cohabit
with ttrange women, and permits them
only to live with their mothers, grand-
mothers, aunts, fitters, nieces, and thofe
of their domejlics who dwelt in the houfe
with them before their ordination.
Can. 19. Readers are to be obliged,
when they come to age, to marry, or to
make the vow of chajtity\.
Can. 33. When virgins lofe their rela-
tions who took care of them, the bifiop, or,
in his abfence, the pricjl, ought to place
them in a nunnery* or ccmmit them to the
care of women of known probity.
Can. 36. Priejis fhall not confecrate
virgins without the bi/Jjop's permiflion —
they are abiblutely forbidden to make thq
holy chryfm.
Council of Carthage, anno 398, called
the fourth.
There are 104 canons relative to the or-
dination of bijhofSy &c. ; and it is ordained,
that every bijhop fhall be interrogated about
the errors common in Africa, and among
others-*-"- Whether he does not condemn
" marriage, and fecoud marriages? Whe-
tc ther he believes it is the fame God who
f This is fomethhrg like u a w\ft, or a mitiimsts
[ 29 1
cc is the author of the Old and New Tefta- Cent,
** ment9 the Law and the Go/pel?" ,. IV'..
Can. 10. Virgins who would be con-
fecrated by the bijhop, mould prefent them-
felves in habits agreeable to their pro-
feflion and vocation, like to thofe which
they are to ufe for the future.
Can. ii. Thofe who are contrasted,
and would receive the benediSlion of mar-
riage, ought to be accompanied by their
kindred, and to abftain from the ufe of
marriage the night after the benediSlion.
Can. 104. Excommunicates widows who
marry again, after they have made profeiTion
of celibacy.
D°, anno 401, called the fifth.
Can. 70. Ordains bi/hops, priefis, arid
deacons, to have no more to do with their
wives, under pain of degradation > for the
lejjer orders, it does not oblige them to celt'
bacy.
Council of Toledo, anno 400.
Can. 1. They permit the order of
deacon to be given to married perfons, pro-
vided they be chafie, and obferve continence-,
but they impofe no other penalty upon a
priefi or deacon, that has not lived in conti-
nence, and who had children before the law
which the bifhops of Lufitania made upon
this fubjedl: they impofe upon them no
other penalty but that they mail not be
capable of riling to a higher dignity.
Can. 3,
[ 3° ]
Cfnt. Can. ?. If a reader marry a widow, he
1V- cannot be advanced to higher orders, at
moit he ihall be only fub- deacon.
Can. 4, Afub- deacon, who marries again,
ftall be put into the rank of porters or
readers, without being capable of reading
the epiftles or go/pels. He who marries a
third time, (hail be feparated from the
church for the ipace of two years, and af-
ter he is reconciled, he fhall never rife
higher than the rank of lay -men.
Can. 1 6. Impoles ten years penance for
adultery.
Can. 17. He who has a concubine and
wife both together, ought to be excommu-
nicated, but he ought not to be excommu-
nicated who has Jrcnly a concubine; fo that it
is neceffary for every one, that is a member
of the church, to fatisfy himfelf either
with one wife or one concubine. This ca-
non (fays Du Pin) may give fome trouble
to thofe, who know not that the word con-
cubine, which is at prefent odious %, was for-
merly taken for a woman, to whom the
marriage promife was given, though fhe was
not married with all the folemnities which
the laws required in marriage, as St. Auflin
f This Canon, as Dr. Jortin, Rem. vol. ii. 294,
obferves, proves the allowance of concubinage in the
Chrijlian church, fo late as anno 400 ; therefore this
will hardly be pretended to be altered by the New
Teftament.
\ It never became fo, 'rill the Pope and his clergy
infuited the God of the Old Tefhunent, by fetting
Kis dif^enfations at nought.
10
has
[ 3i ]
has explained it, chap. 5. of the book about Cent.
the advantages of marriage. '
Can. 18. We ought not to communi-
cate with the widow of a bi/Jjop, a prieft, or
a deacon , if fhe marries again ; (he ought
not to be reconciled until the point of
death.
Can. 19. Inflicls the fame penalty on
the daughters of bijhops, &c. who marry af-
ter they have been confecrated to God.
N. B. This council was compofed of
nineteen Spanifh bifhops.
In the abridgement of the doflrim of
the fourth age of the church, it is faid —
<c They approved of marriage, and would
■• have the perfons to be married, con-
" traded in they^v of the church, and in
<c the prefence of a priefl, who gave a
l< blefjing. They honoured virginity, and
" commended thofe who profeffed it, and
u looked upon thofe as facrilegious perfons
** who violated that profeffion. They had
" much reverence and veneration for the
" blejfed virgin and the faints, they prayed to
*4 them, and alfo honoured their reliques.
" They prayed for the dead. We have of-
" ten (fays Du Pin) taken notice of their
" opinion concerning the authority of holy
" fcripture and tradition. They taught
" that there was but one Catholic church,
u out of which there was no f ah at ion, and
" to ivbofe authority all men ought to Jub-
" mit, becaufe it can neither ceafe to be,
" ngr err in matters of faith.
" Whereof
[ 3* ]
Cf*t* " Whereof one may fay in general (adds
L_ " Du Pin) that the doctrine of the fourth
" age was the belief of the church of that
" age, and lb, the church not being capa-
" ble of changing her belief, it neceffarily
t€ follows, that the do&rine of that time
" is not at all different from that which
" the church teaches /till at this day."
In the abridgement of the difcipline of
the fourth age, we are told — " Prayer for
" the dead was a common practice in the
" church, they were commemorated at the
*u celebration of the eucharifi; the invoca-
" tion of faints and mariyrs, and the cele-
M bration of their feflivals, were common
'* in all the churches ; the ufe of croffes
" was frequent; the fign of the crofs was
" made very7 often; there were images ia
M many churches.
" A blejjing was given for marriage ; but
*c the church never gave it for-f-y^Wmar-
" riages, and they even put bigamifis under
" penance for fome time. Marriages con-
" traded between perfons who could not
" lawfully marry, according to the civil
i{ laws, were looked upon as null\. Di-
" vorce for adultery was permitted in fome
" churches. The monaftic ftate was efta-
" blifhed' in this age, and became very
" common in a little time."
f Still they were good and valid marriages*
J Qu ? Were thel'e marriages null in God's fight.
CEN-
[ 33 J
CENTURY V.
St. John Chrysostom,
In his 19th and 20th fermons, which are Cent*
on 1 Cor. 7. takes occafion to fpeak v-
againft dancing* and other profane pomps at
weddings — " To what purpofe (faith he)
" do ye bring in a prieft to crave a bleffi ng*
" and the next day yourfelves commit bafe
w anions?"
From this, and other paffages in the^tf-
therSy it does manifeftly appear, that the
marriage-contract, though fometimes made,
according to fome canons ', in they^ of the
church* was of a civil nature, and that the
only thing the prieji did, was to pronounce
a hlejing, unlefs indeed he partook of the
diverlions of the <wedding-feajl9 which alfo
feems to have been the cuftom, and that
pretty heartily too ; for the council of Lao*
dice a, Canon 14, fays, " that clergymen
ought not to be prefent at Jhews or balls %
that are made during marriage-feafts, but
arife and be gone before the majk begins."—*
So that we may conclude, there were many
abufes of this kind, which gave rife to this
canon.
In Chryfojloms 24th fermon on 2 Cor. 4.
he gives great praifes to virginity, and to
^monajlic life; which he thus deicribes :— *
•• Do you take notice of thofe monks who
Vol. III. D " live
[ 34 ]
Cent. " live privately, and dwell upon the top*
u of mountains ? What aufterities and mor-
u tifications do they not pradtife? They are
" covered with afhes, cloathed with fack-
u cloth, loaden with chains and irons, fhut
" up in little cells; ftruggling continu-
" ally with hunger, they fpend their time
" in watchings, to blot out part of
" their sins," He obferves alfo, that,
though virginity is a fupernatural gift, yet
it is unprofitable, if it be not accompa-
nied with charity and meeknefs.
He proves that fecond marriages are not
forbidden, though it is better to forbear.
In his book of Virginity, he fays, M mar-
€< riage is good, that's my opinion, but vir-
" ginity is better. This I own, and if you
" will have my fenfe, it is as much above
" matrimony as heaven is above the earth,
" and makes men like to angels"
Afterwards he makes an objeftion — " If
*c it be better to live unmarried, why did
" God inftitute marriage? Why did he
" make women1? And, mould all men em-
*' brace virginity, how mould mankind be
" propagated?" — To anfwer thefe objec-
tions, St. Chryfojiom goes back as far as
the creation of man, and takes notice,
that " while he was in the earthly para-
M dife with Eve, he was taken up with
€t a converfation with God, and he was
" then freed from luji and the defires of the
" flefl> and lived in perfect virginity, and
" the
t 35 3
Vj the whole world was at that time a vaft Cent.
" folitude. But man, having difobeyed v* x
God's commands, and becoming mortal
and corruptible, with that happy life
which he enjoyed, he loft alfo the glory
of virginity: fo that Jin being the caufe
of deathy became at the fame time the
caufe of marriage. It is probable that
though there had been no marriage, yet
f* the world % might have been peopled,
u and God have created other men as he
had done the Jtrjl" Adding, that "it
is not the frequent ufe of marriage that
multiplieth mankind, but God's blef-
fing:,> and he believes that " marriage
is more neceffary to the world at prefent,
for a remedy againft incontinency, than
" for the prejervation of mankind '; he grants
{* that it is neceffary for the weak, but that
" virginity is far more honourable and pro-
J This paflage puts one in mind of Lejlie% obferva-
tion on the famous myfiic, Mada?ne Bourignon—
who faid — " there was no need for Christ to fuffer
u in order to the redemption of mankind, God might
" have effected it fome other way." — " This devil of
<c a faint," fays Leflie, " gives a direct lye to the fcrip-
cc ture, Luke xxiv. 46. which faith — Thus (sJ^i)
** it behoved Christ to fuffer, Sic." — How farfhort
this angel of a Father is from giving the lye to the book
of Genefts, wherein we find marriage instituted in the
days of perfect innocency, muft be left to the j udg-
ment of the reader, on the perufal of what is faid in
the above paragraph. However fevere LeJJie's ani-
madverfion on Madame Bourignon may appear* it
is fully warranted by what Christ faid to Peter
©n a fimilar occafion. See Mat. xvi. 22, 23.
D 2 " Stable
<<
[ 36 ]
Cent. " fitable too: he pretendeth, that what-
v> " foever St. Paul faid of marriage, ought to
" induce men to embrace virginity."
He wrote two treatifes, " Againft the co-
" habitation of clerks with women' — and
" A difcourfe to a widow ;" —he exhorts
her to " continue in her widowhood. He
made another little book on purpofe to
fhew, that Jhe ought not to marry again ;
where he proves, that though fecond marri-
ages be not zbfolutely forbidden, yet it is
much better to continue in widowhood.
This eminent father, in his difcourfes on
the eucharijl, affirmed, that the bread and
wine become the body and blood 'of Christ ;
that we ought not to doubt of it, feeing
Christ himfelf affirmeth it — that fire
from heaven confumeth the things of-
fered, and changeth them into the body
and blood of Jesus Christ.
In the Chrijlian maxims, which are fe-
ledled from his fermons, he lays it down,
that, " folitarinefs, and a monajlic life,
" are more to be defired than the greateft
" kingdoms. "
Pope Innocent I.
Can. 4. Forbids orders to aperfon who
has married a widow.
Can. 5. Extends this prohibition even
to thofe who have married fuch a woman
before baptifm.
Can. 6.
r 37 j
Can. 6. The fame with regard to thofe Cent.
who have been twice married. ___
Can. 12. Prohibits the admitting vir-
gins— that, being confecrated to God, mar-
ried, or were corrupted — to penance, before
the death of the perfon with whom they
have committed the crime.
Can. 13. Enjoins penance to virgins that
marry, after promifing virginity, though
they had not been folemnly veiled by the
bifiop.
Can. 1. Epift. 3. He confirms Siricius
his law, concerning the celibacy of priejls
and deacons* Yet he forgiveth thofe, who
through ignorance obferved it not, on con-
dition that they fhould continue in that
order, and rife no higher. But he ordains
that thofe (houid be degraded who violated
it knowingly.
In Letter 5. To two bifhops of Abruz-
zo, he bids them depoje the priejls that
were accuied of having had children fince
their ordination, if they be convicted of that
crime.
Letter 9. Declareth, that a man who
married another woman, while his wife
was in captivity, ought to return to the
former ; becaufe a fecond marriage cannot
be lawful, except the former wife be dead
or feparated by divorce.
Letter 22, To Rufus, and other bi-
fhops of Macedonia, dated anno 414, he
telle them, that " he was much furprized
D 3 " by
[ 38 ]
Cent. u by a letter directed to the fee of Rome,
v- " as the chief eft of all churches, becaufe
" they confulted him about things that
" had no difficulty r, and concerning which
H he had plainly declared his opinion,
" One is, the ordination of fuch as had
" married widows" Pope Innocent faith,
*f That there is no difpute that they mould
<€ not be ordained -f and affirms, '* that
" it was the practice of all, both eafiern and
" weft em churches ; nay, he would have
" thofe to be degraded who are found to be
" in orders."
The fecond is concerning thofe, who
having loft a former wife, being yet unbap*
tized, had married a fecond after baptifm.
Some were of opinion, that this kind of
bigamy did not hinder them from ordina-
tion. Pope Innocent alledgeth feveral rea-
fons, to prove that fuch a practice is not
to be followed.
St. Jerom
Was born about the year 345. In his
treatife of Virginity, to Euftochium, he
highly extols it. In his directions to her
for the maintenance of it, he advifes her
to fhun reading profane books ; and, to in-
force what he fays, tells her, that " he,
" being once too earneft in reading Cicero,
(e Plautus, and other profane authors, he
w fell into a violent fever, and, by it,
i€ into a kind of agony, and then was
" caught
f 39 ]
4C caught up in the fpirit to the tribunal of Cent.
%i Jesus Christ; where, having been v*
" foundly whipt for reading profane au-
" thors too much, he was forbidden to
" read them any more." He affures Eu-
Jlochium that " this ftory Is not a dream,
" and calls the tribunal where he appear ed>
" and the judgment that was given againjl
" him, to attefl the truth of what he
t€ fays/' Yet, when Riifinus upbraided
him afterwards, that, for all that, he had
not given over reading profane books, he
laughs at his fimplicity, and jells upon him
for taking a dream for truth. So much for
this faint's || fincerity !
In his polemical treatifes, his bitternefs
againfl his opponents is exceffive. When
he difputeth with Helvldlus, he commend-
eth virginity to that excefs, that it was
thought he defigned to condemn matrix
monyi — and he difcourfeth after fuch a
manner of virginity, as would almofl per-
fuade men, that it was neceffary to lead
that fort of life, in order to befaved. La-
bour, fallings, auflerities, and various
mortifications, together with folitude and
pilgrimages, make up the fubject of almofl
all his advices and exhortations. His de-
ll LeClerc, Quaeft. Hieron. iii. p. 62. fays — " In-
*c genium Hieronymi totum fuit ad ja£tatione?n, iff uif-
tc fimulationem compofititm." The genius 0/* Jerome, was
wholly turned to bragging and dijjimulation. See Con-
fejjional, 3d edit. p. 406—408.
D 4 light
[ 40 ]
light was to hear of the lives of monks
and hermits, and he eafily believed what-
soever was told him upon that fubjedt,
though never fo extraordinary.
In fhort, from the account which Du
Pin gives of this Saint Jerom, his compo-
fition feems to have been a mixture, like
that of the Cynic Diogenes, in point of tem-
per and dilpofition, and like that of the
vifionary of La Mancha in point of judg-
ment. See before cihelyph. vol. ii. 123—
128. ift edit. p. iib — 121. 2d. edit.
St. Austin.
It being faid, by fome enemies to the
Chriftian faith, that God had abolifhed
the old law, either out of inconjlancy, or
becaufe He was weary of it, St. Aujlin
anfwered — that u God is unchangeable in
" all that concerns Him/elf; and that, as
99 He hath given precepts and ordinances
99 for the good of man, fo it is for the
" fame end that He fometimes changeth
" them, as He judgeth it may be more
" convenient for them."
N. B. The Creators changing His laws,
in order to fuit the creature's convenience* is
a curious idea !
He adds, that, " we (hould not believe,
*' that, fince the coming of Jesus Christ,
" thofe things can be obferved, which were
" either permitted, or prefcribed, only for
99 the time of the old law 1 though at that
tinie
<<
[ 4i 3
<c time they were to be taken in their pro- Cent.
" per fenfe." He inftanceth in the poly- '__
gamy of the patriarchs, becaufe they lived
-fholily in marriage, with a profpect of hav-
ing children; and he confidently preferred!
that ftate, before that of fjch men, who,
having but one wife, abufe matrimony to
fatisfy their § brutifh luft.
He taught, that of all that is done for
the dead, nothing availeth them where
they are, but the offering of the Eu-
chariji, prayers, and alms-deeds : that
thefe things are not ufeful to all, but only
to fuch as deferred, in their life- time, to reap
benefit bv them after their death.
He wrote againft Jovinian, who was
called an heretic, and an enemy to virgi-
nity, for perfuading fome Roman virgins to
marry, and for maintaining that <c mar-
" ried perfons might be as holy, as perfons
u in a ftate of celibacy ." jfovinians opi-
nion was rejected at Rome ; and Saint Aujlin
wrote a book, to fhewr, that Jovinian s
opinions might be refuted without con-
demning marriage , in which he examines
how men could have had children had they
perfifted in a ftate of innocence.
t Qu ? How could the patriarchs be faid to "live
M holily in marriage," if they lived in zjlate forbidden
by the primary injiitution ?
§ From this paffage, and many more, it is very
clear, that this father, as well as others, differed very
widely from St. Paul, in their notions relative to the
ufe and erub of marriage. See po ft, p. 42. N. B.
He
t 42 ]
He declares that man guilty of adultery,
who fhould abufe a 'virgin, when he has
a defign to marry another. As for the
young woman, fhe is guilty of Jin, but
not of adultery, if fhe is true to that man,
and defigns not to marry when he leaveth
her. He doth not excufe from venial fin,
either the man or the woman, who have
another profpedt in marriage than the be-
getting of children. N. B.
He determines, that, though human
laws permit a man to marry again, when
he is divorced from a former wife, yet it is
not lawful for Chriftians. — He concludes,
that marriage is of itfelf a good thing, but
one of thofe good things which we fhould
not look after, but in order to a greater
good, or to avoid a great evil. That, before
Christ, the moft continent might marry, to
multiply that people from whom the Mef-
fiah was to be born ; but now, as many as
are able to contain, do well not to marry.
That, for this -f-reafon, men were permitted
formerly to have fever al wives, but now no
man is to have more than one wife. That
the go/pel purity is fo great in this point,
that a deacon was not to be ordained, who
f What an entire confidence had thefe fathers in
the credulity of mankind, to venture forth their reve-
ries, on recfons fo abfurd and foolifh, as to be againfr,
all reafon? As if the command to increafe and mul-
tiply the human fpecies, Gen. i. 28. was not as necef-
fary for one period of the world, as for another. See
port, p. 47,
had
[ 43 ]
had ever had more than one wife. He ap- Cent.
proves their opinion who underftand this v«
maxim in its whole extent, and without
reflriction, as did Jerom, by excepting
thofe who contracted a. former marriage be-
fore baptifm. And, as a young woman who
had been defiled when flie was a catechu-
men, cannot be confecrated as a virgin
after baptifm, even fo it hath been thought
reafonable, that the man, who hath had
more than one wife, whether before or
after baptifm, fhould be looked upon as
wanting one necejfary qualification for or-
ders.
His book Of Holy Virginity, fays, that
" virginity is one of the moft excellent
iC gifts of God." — He exalteth the excel-
lency of virgins confecrated to God, by
the example of the virginity of the mother
of God, who, according to him, had
made a vow of continency before the angel
appeared to her.- — He fays, that virginity
fhould not be chofen as a thing necejfary
to falvation, but as a ftate of greater per-
fection ; and afferts, that virgins fhall have
a particular reward in heaven.
He exhorts hufbands that have left their
wives to live in continency, alledging the
example of churchmen, who abftain fo re-
ligioufly, though they often wrere forced
to take that profeffion upon them againft
their wills.
He believes, that, by the infpiration of
Gqd,
r 44 j
God, the martyrs know the neceffities of
the faithful, and hear their prayers. He
does not queftion but martyrs help the
living; but he knows not whether they
do it by themfelves, or whether God
doeth it by angels at their requeft. He
confeffeth, that we cannot know by which
of thefe means, or whether by both, the
martyrs work miracles.
St. Aujii?is anfwer to the following
queftion is very curious, viz. — " Jf con-
" cupifcence is evil, and an effedb of fin,
" if all children are born in fin, how
" comes matrimony to be approved, which
" is the effect and fpring of this fin V*
Anfwer. " Though lujl be a defecl, and
•? a confequence of the firft man's fin,
" which remaineth even in the baptized,
€C yet conjugal chaftity is to be approved,
" which mak a good ufe of an evil
" thing."
Here St. Aufiin, as well as St. Chryfojlom,
(fee before p. 35.) evidently makes the na-
tural defire of the fexes to each other,
evil in itfelf — an horrible blafphemy againft
God, who implanted it in man's nature
for the wifeft purpofes, in the days of
man's innocence ! otherwife how could the
command — " increafe and multiply' — have
been then given, Gen. i. 28 ? — and the
way in which this was to be done, exprefsly
commanded, Gen. ii. 24. ? With as much
reafon thefe fathers might have faid, that
the
[ 45 ]
the appetite of hunger is evil, and the effect
of fitly though God provided food for
man. Gen. i. 29.
St. Aujlin has been ftyled the father of
the Latin church.
The Rbemijis quote this father s autho-
rity for thus commenting on 1 Cor. vii.
29. — " He exhorts that thofe who have
* wives, fhould not wholly beftow them-
1 felves in the vain tranlitory pleafure and
1 voluptuoufnefs of their flefh, but live
* in fuch moderation, that marriage hin-
* der them, as little as may be, from fpiri-
1 tual cogitations : which is beft fulfilled of
* them, who, by mutual confent, do wholly
' contain, whether they have had children
' or none, contemning carnal iffue for the
* joys of heaven— and thefe marriages be
' more bleffed than any other, faith St.
* Aug. de Serm. Dom. in Monte, L. i.
< c. 14."
Council fuppofed to be held at Rome under
Pope Innocent I,
Can. 1. and 2. Speak of thofe virgins
penance, who having folemnly put on the
veil, and received the priejt's benediction,
commit inceft, or con trad: prohibited mar-
riages. Penance is likewife impofed upon
thofe that made a fingle vow of virginity —
though they made no folemn profeffion,
nor received the veil — when they happen
to
[ 46 1
Cent, to marry, or fuffer themfelvcs to be takcrl
v- away.
Can. 3. Concerns the fancJity ofbi/hops,
priejls, and deacons: they are told, that
they ought to give example to the people;
that they are obliged to remain unmarried,
and feveral reafons are alledged for it.
Priejls and bijhops, fay they, are to preach
continence to the people : with what confi-
dence lhall they do this, if they keep it
not themfelves ? They are obliged to of-
fer frequently the holy facrijice, to baptize,
confecrate, and adminijter : to do it with
the greater reverence, they muft be cbajie
both in body and fpirit.
Can. 1 1 . Speaks very ambiguoufly con-
cerning a man's marrying his uncle's wife,
or an aunt's marrying with the fon of her
hufband's brother.
Council of Carthage. Anno 407.
Can. 8. Forbids divorced perfons to be
married to others. This regulation is
there judged to be conformable to the law
of the gojpel, and the decifion of the apof-
tle St. Paul. (Quere, where ?)
Ditto. Anno 418 and 419.
Can. 3. Confirms the rule of the coun-
cil of Carthage, anno 401, concerning the
celibacy of bijldops, priejls, and deacons : it
is
[ 47 ]
is faid that their miniftry obligeth them to Cent.
it. V*
Faujlinus confirms this order in the 4th
canon.
Can. 16. Readers are obliged to marry
when they come to the age of puberty, or
to make a vow of continency.
Can. 18. Forbids giving the eucharijl
to the dead.
St. Isidore Pelusiota
Prefers a fingle life before marriage.—
He obferves, that the polygamy of the an-
tient patriarchs was then very excufable,
becaufe it was neceffary that they fhould
-have a numerous pofterityj but it may not
be now ufed as a pretence to \ cover our in-
continence.
He taught, that the veil, that covers the
J This cc moft lame and impotent conclufion"
from the premifes, which fpeak of quite another mat-
ter, would almoft tempt one to fay of thefe fathers^
as Lord Chief Juftice Holt faid of one of the heralds^
who appeared as a witnefs in a caufe, wherein the de-
termination of fome queftion depended on a diftinc-.
tion in heraldry. The herald giving but a blind ac-
count of the matter, and tiring the patience of the
court with many abfurd anfwers — " Well," faid the
Chief Juftice, " I perceive, that this filly fellow
" don't underftand his ovm filly trade." The reader
will find many inftanc.s of this, in the perufal of
thefe extracts from the fathers, whofe trade and occu-
pation feem to have been fyji 'em-making : in which they
were as great proficients, with refpec-t to divinity, par-
ticularly as relating to marriage, as the projectors at
Laputa were in experimental philofophy and mathema-
tics. See Gulliver.
9 facramental
[ 48 ]
Cent, facramental elements, doth undoubtedly ovef *
' fpread the body of Jesus Christ, and the
Holy Spirit turns the wine into the blood of
Jesus Christ. He approves of the ho-
nour given to martyrs, and the refpect
which is beftowed on their reliques\ and
difallows the prefenting of offerings at
their altars in honour of them.
He relates a ftory of a young woman,
who coming into the light of a young
man, who was in love with her, cured
him of that fond paffion, by prefenting
herfelf with her hair crop'd, and her head
covered with afhes.
As St. Ifidore profeffed a monaftic life,
he extols a monaftic ftate, and recommends
the cloathing of monks to be of hair, and
their food to be nothing but herbs.
St. C^elestine,
Chofen Bijhop of Rome anno 423. He
decreed — that none be ordained bijhop,
who hath been married twice, or hath
married a widow : which he ordains as a
rule, not only for the future, but he re-
quires, that the ordinations already made
in prejudice of this law, be looked upon
as unlawful, which may not. be allowed in
force.
St. Leo,
Chofen Pope anno 440, defervedly reck-
oned (fays Du Pin J among the fathers of
the
f 49 1
the church* He lays it down, as a con- Cent.
dition neceflary for holy orders, not to v*
have married above one wife, and fhe not
to have been a widow. He commands
the bifops, to whom he wrote, to deprive
them of their biftoprics who were found to
had two wives, or had married a widow.
He orders, that the minifters of the al-
tar, that is to fay, the deacons and fab- dea-
cons, fhould be fubjedt to the law of con-
tinence, as well as the bifoops and priejis.
He adds, that being laics or readers, they
may be married and have children ; but
being arrived to the facred miniftry of the
altars, it is not to be permitted to them*
That their marriage ought to be changed
from carnal to fpiritaal, that fo they may
neither forfake their wives, nor have any
carnal knowledge of them. St. Leo is the
firft that extended the law of celibacy to
fab- deacons.
He declares, that a clergyman who gives
his daughter in marriage to one that hath
a concubine, ought not to be treated as if
he had given her to a perfon already mar-
ried, becaufe concubines cannot be * counted
lawful wives, nor the familiar commerce
with them ?narriage, unlefs they be free,
endowed, and joined together by public
marriage.
That, young women, whofe relations
* See before, p. 30. and vol. i. Append, to chap. 2.
Vol. III. E have
V.
[ 5° ]
Cent, have married them to perfons that have
concubines, do not fin in dwelling with
thofe to whom they are married.
That it is not the fin of adultery, but a
virtuous a&ion, for a man to cajl off his
concubine, that he may live only with his
wife. The concubines, fpoken of in this
place, are flaves, with whom men lived
as with their wives, without having any
commerce with others, though they were
not folemnly married to them.
He could wijh that thofe who have done
penance when they were boys, would not
marry, yet he excufes young men who do it
to avoid incontinency. See i Cor. vii. 9.
He orders that the monks who have mar-
ried fhould be made to do penance, becaufe
they cannot leave that profeffion without
fin, when they have once embraced it,
but are obliged to perform their vows.
He condemns virgins, who married af-
ter they had voluntarily put on the habit,
though they were not yet confecrated.
Can. 4. He commands bifjops, priejls,
and deacons to live unmarried; and ob-
ferves, that the ufe of marriage was not
allowed to fub-deacons. St. Gregory fays,
that " it was hard to refufe it to the faf-
91 ter." — But quere, — Why more fo than
to the former ?
The Gallican bifhope wrote to St. Leo
a letter full of high commendations and
compliments, and they call the Ghurch of
Rome
Rome — " Apoflolica fedes, wide religionh Cent.
" nojlrce fons & origo manavit." — " The ( [^
•* apoftolic church, from whence comes
J1 the origin and fource of our religion."
In one of his fermons, on St. Peter s
day, he fays, that, that apojlle never for-
fakes his church, but continues to be the
foundation of it — that St. Peter is not only
bifoop of the Roman church, but the head
of all the churches in the world.
St. Hilary, Bifhop of Arles,
A man of remarkable eloquence, and of
great zeal. — He did much good in his vi-
iitations to the Gallican churches. He
often went to fee St. Germanus, with whom
he made an enquiry into the life and man-
ners of the clergy. While he was with
him, a certain bifhop, named Celidonius, was
ace u fed before him, becaufe he had mar-
ried a widow before he was ordained, which
is forbidden by the canons, and the au-
thority of the Holy See. The cafe being
difcuffed, with all fairnefs imaginable, and
the witneffes heard, he pronounced, that
he whom the holy canons deprived of his
friejlhood, ought to forlake it of himfelf :
the poor bifhop refolved with himfelf to
go to Rome-, he complains that he had
been ufed with too much fever ity.
St. Hilary ', underftanding this, puts him-
felf immediately upon his journey to go to
Rome. The coldnefs of the {^{on, the
E 2 height
[ 5* 1
Cent, height of the Alps, and other troubles in
• the journey, could not take off the edge
of his zeal ; he conquered them all, and
went to Rome on foot : after having paid
his devotion to the tombs of the apqftles and
martyrs, he went to St. Leo, gave him all
due refpedt and veneration, and humbly
befought him, that he would make no al-
teration in the ordinary difcipline of the
church.
Hilary, Bifhop of Rome,
Was of opinion that hi/hops who had
been twice married, or had married a widow,
ought to be deprived.
Gelasius I. Bifhop of Rome,
Repeats the antient canons concerning
the qualifications of fuch as they ought to
ordain — that they ought to be but once
?narried.
Council of Chalcedon.
Can. 15. Forbids the ordination of a
deaconefs before $ forty years of age, and
without ftrift examination ; and declares,
that if fhe fhall marry after fhe has been
ibme time in the fervice of the church, fhe
fhall be excommunicated with her hujband.
Can. 1 6. It is not permitted to virgins,
devoted to God, to marry* They who
J 1 Tim. v. 9.
have
[ 53 ]
have done fo fhall be excommunicated— Cent.
yet the bifoop of the place may treat them
with fuch lenity and mildnefs as he thinks
fit.
I. Council of Orange, anno 441.
Can. 22. For the future no married per-
fons fhall be ordained deacons, unlefs they
make a profeflion of living in chajiity.
Can. 23. If it be found out that one of
thofe deacons do not abftain from his wife,
he fhall be deprived.
Can. 24. Excepts from this law, thofe
who have been ordained heretofore. The
only penalty it inflifts on them is, that they
cannot obtain any higher orders.
Can. 25. Thofe who have been twice
married, though never fo worthy, fhall be
admitted to no other orders than that of
fub- deacon.
Can. 27. Of widows profeffing chajiity-*
orders, that it fhall be done before the
bi/Jjop, and that it be difcovered by their
widows garments, or by a kind of veil put
upon them, as it is the Roman cuftom, and
is decreed by the council of Toledo, can. 4.
and of Carthage, can. 104.
Can. 28. Such as break their vow of
virginity, whether men or women, fhall be
made to do penance.
E 3 II. Council
[ 54 ]
Cent. II. Council of Arles, about anno 442.
— — — Can. 2. No man may be made a prieft,
who is married, unlefs he will renounce
the ufe of ??iarriage — which they call by
the name of converfion.
Can. 21. A penitent may not marry.
Can. 52. Is againft thofe who marry
after they have vowed virginity.
Council of Anjou, anno 433.
Can. 4. The clergy mall not dwell with
•women.
Can. 5. They fhall be treated very fe-
vcrely, who forfake their ftate of penance
or virginity.
Can. 11. No perfon mall be ordained
deacon or priejt, who hath had more than
one wife.
Letter of Lupus Bifliop of Troyes, and
Euphronius Biihop of Augusto-
dunum, to Thalassius Bifhop of
Anjou.
This letter contains, 1. Rules concern-
ing the different ways of celebrating the
vigils of the feflivals.
2. About the clergy that had been twice
married. They fay that it may be tolerated
in the lefler orders, as high as a porter :
but exorcifts and fub-deacons ought not to
have been twice married. 3. They fay,
that
[ 55 ]
that it were better for the clergy to abftain Cent.
from marriage, but in this they mull fol- V*
low the cujlom of the churches* As to the
exorcijls and fub- deacons, they muft not be
fuffered to marry a fecond time ; that, in
the church of Augiijlodunum, none of the
clergy, not the porters themfelves, are al-
lowed it.
Council oi Tours, 461.
Can. 1. and 2. Recommend a fingle
life to bijhops, priejls, and deacons.
Can. 3. Forbids them to dwell with
"women.
Can. 4. Prohibits the clergy, who
rnight marry, to marry widows.
CENTURY VI. Cent.
VI.
Pope Symmachus.
He condemns thofe who marry widows,
or virgins confecrated to God, although
they who are married mean well. He or-
dains that fuch fhall be caft out of the
communion of the church : and he forbids
widows who have lived a long while unmar-
ried, and virgins who have been a confider-
able time in monafteries, to marry.
Ennodius, Bifhop of Pavia,
Took orders by confent of his wife,
who, for her part, embraced a chafte and
E 4 religious
[ 56 ]
Gent, religious life. He wrote a poem in praife
— of virginity.
St. Fulgentius.
His letter concerning the conjugal duty
and the v$w9 is upon a particular cafe.
Some had afked Fulgentius — cc Whether a
" married per Jon was obliged to keep a vow
■c of continence?" St. Fulgentius makes
many obfervations concerning the ufe of
marriage, and the obligation of vows. He
remarks upon the firft head, " that the
*' ufe of marriage is allowed, when it is
" intended for the procreation of chil-
** dren $ but when it has no end but plea-
" fure, although it is not a crime like
" adultery , yet it is always a Jmall fin,
" which is blotted out by prayer and good
" works."
As to the vow, he fays, that, te there is
*' no doubt, but, by it, an obligation is
u contracted to do the thing which was
tc vowed." But he maintains, that " the
" vow of conti?zcnce made by one of the
" married perfons, cannot oblige the other,
" nor difpenfe with that perfon who made
" the vow from paying the conjugal duty
*' to the other, at leaft unlefs both parties
" had concurred in making the Vow."
Having laid down thefe principles, he con-
cludes— " that if the perfons who wrote
" to him, had both made a vow of conti-
€< nence, then they were obliged to keep
« it j
[ 57 1
" it; and that if they found themfelves Cent,
<' tempted by carnal defires, they fhould VI*
" humbly pray to God to give them grace
" -f to refift them ; but if only one of the
" two had made a vow of continence, that
" party was obliged to pay the conjugal
" duty to the other who had not made it,"
The Emperor Justinian,
Began his reign in 527, and died in 565,
He added many laws to thofe made by
the princes his predeceffors ; viz.
If a monk enter into orders, he is for-
bidden to marry.
He who would be made a bifloop, mud
be one who was never married but once,
and alfo one who was not efpoufed to a
widow.
The fame precautions mail be obferved
in the ordination of inferior clergymen.
The deaconejfes mall be ordained only of
virgins, or of widows who were never mar-
ried but once, and who have paffed the
fiftieth year of their age. If any younger
are ordained, they mail enter into g. wo-
nafiery.
In treating pf marriages, he firft menr-
f Here is a fair preceptive precedent, as before,
p. 6. for praying to God, to invert the order of na~
ture — to annihilate his own command — and to defeat
his own purpofe in the creation of the male andy>-
male, and in ordaining marriage! See 1 Cor. vii.
tions
t 58 ]
Cent, tions the caufes of the difiblution of mar-
, VI- riage. He diftinguifhes them into two
forts : the Jirfl, are thofe, which he calls
ex bona gratia, becaufe it is to be prefumed
that both parties are willing. 1. When
one of the two who are joined together
makes a vow of cbajlity. 2. When the
hufband is impotent for the fpace of three
years. 3. When he is a captive, or abfent
for the fpace of Jive years, without hear-
ing of him : but not when he is a Have,
or condemned to the mines, or exiled and
banifhed for ever. 4. That if a woman be
efpoufed who is found to be a flave, the
marriage fhall be null for the future, unlefs*
he was her mailer, who married her as a
free woman, in which cafe (he fhall con-
tinue free. 5. Conjlantine had permitted a
woman, whofe hufband had been four years
in the wars, without writing to her, or
giving her any marks of his affe&ion, to
marry another.
Jujiinian repeals this law, and ordains
that a woman cannot marry again until
the end of ten' years ; and alfo till fhe has
folicited her hufband to return, and pre-
fented her petition to his captain or his
colonel, whereby it may be evident that
he has no mind to return to his wife.
Thefe are the caufes of diffolution of
marriages which Jujlinian calls ex bona
gratia.
The other caufes are thofe which arc
rigorous :
[ 59 ]
rigorous : as, if a man or a woman be con- Cent.
victed of adultery, murder, poij'oning, theft, ^**
treafon, robbery, or any other crime : and if
it happen that the woman be guilty of thefe
Crimes, me fhall continue Jive years with-
out being capable of marrying again ; and
alfo if it be me who convicts her hufband
of them, fhe fhall at leaft continue one year
before her fecond marriage.
"Jujlinian adds alfo three caufes for which
women may be divorced. If they make
themfelves mi/carry. If they bathe with
other men. If they fpeak of marriage to
others while their hufband liveth.
Jujlinian repealed what he had before
ordained concerning perfons who were in
the army, and ordains, that it fhall never
be lawful for a woman to marry again,
unlefs fhe has fufficient proof or witnefTes
that her hufband is dead.
Another law contains reafons for which
a divorce may be granted. A man may
divorce his wife — if fhe has confpired
againft the flate — if me be convicted of
adultery — if fhe has attempted her huf-
band's life — if fhe has dwelt or warned
with ftrangers againft her huiband's will—
if fhe be prefent at public fports in fpite
of him. The woman may alfo be parted
from her huiband — if he be a criminal to
the flate — if he has attempted her life — if
he woufd have proftituted her — if he co-
habits with other women, after his wife
has
t 60 J
Cent, has admonifhed him to forfake their com-
VI.
v pany.
As to what concerns the clergy — they
muft have no concubine, nor natural chil-
dren ; but they muft be virgins, or iuch as
are married only once to one woman.
If he who is to be ordained, has not a wife,
then, before he is ordained, he muft en-
gage to live in celibacy ; but he who ordains
a deacon, or fub- deacon, may permit him to
marry after his ordination.
That if a prieji, or deacon, or fub- deacon,
efpoufe a woman after his ordination, he is
to be turned out from the clergy.
That a reader may marry — but if he
contract a fecond marriage, or efpoufe a
widow, he cannot afcend to higher dignity
among the clergy.
That if any marry after they have been
among the clergy, they mall return to their
iirft condition.
He reftores the antient cujlom, whereby
married perfons were allowed to feparate,
with the confent of one another, without
any other formality.
St. Benedict.
This gloomy mortal, famous among the
monks, fhut himfclf up in a frightful
cave. — He declares that his rule contains
only the Jirjl elements of a religious and
fpiritual life, and that the books cf the- fa-*
tbers contain it in perfection*
N. B. One
[ 6i ]
N. B. One mould think that the fcrip- Cest.
tures bore a price fomething under par, in
the eyes of thefe enthufiafls.
Pope Pelagius II.
In one of his decrees, he allows that a
man may be ordained deacon, who, having
left his wife, had children by a tnaid-fer-
vant without efpoufing her, although it be
againft the laws and the canons, merely on
account of the want of thofe who are dif-
pofed to be clergymen.
He ordains alfo, that this maid-fervant
mall be put into a monaftery, to make
there profeffion of continence.
St. John, furnamed Climacus.
This faint was called Climacus, from
his work intitled KA/jxai;, /. e. 2, J c ale or
ladder.
This fcale contains thirty degrees, which
are fo many Chrijlian and religious virtues.
The 15th contains the praifes of chaftity.
There he mews the confequences of this
virtue, and the enormitv of the crime
which is oppofite to it; he condemns it,
even to the motions of lujl, which happen
in the time of Jleep. Pie prefcribes for a
remedy, that they lhould clothe themfelves
with iackcloth, and cover themfelves with
ajhes ; that they lhould pais the night
ftanding ; that they mould fuffer hunger
and thirft ; and that they mould lodge in
the
f 62 ]
Cent, the tombs, and be humble and charitable*
VI» — See 1 Cor. vii. 9.
St. Gregory, Pope 590,
Surnamed the Great.
St. Gregory proves fepiji. 39. lib. ix.)
that marriages are not diffblved by the en-
trance of one of the married perfons into
a religious houfe, although human laws
permit the man to part from his wife, or
the woman from her hufband, that they
may go into a monaftery.
He adds, in epifi. 44. of the fame book,
where he handles the fame queftion, that
the law of God does not allow a man to
forfake his wife for any caufe but adul-
tery ; neverthelefs, he permits married per-
fons to part from one another, that they
may enter into a religious houfe, when
this is done with the confent of both
parties.
St. Gregory took it ill, that the fub-
deacons of Sicily were obliged to abjlain
from their wives, according to the cuftom
of the church of Rome. This law ap-
peared to him harih and unreafonable, be-
caufe they found not continence eitablifhed
by any law for them, and they were not
obliged to keep it before they were or-
dained. He feared left fomethi?ig worfe
lliould happen if this yoke were impofed
upon them.
He orders, that none fhall be ordained for
9 the
[ 63 ]
the future, who do not promife to live in Cent.
VI.
cojitinence. \
He declares, that he will put in execu-
tion the order of the Pope, his predeceffor,
about the continence of fub -deacons, and
that thofe who are married mail be obliged
to abftain from the life of marriage, or elfe
to forfake the fervice of the altar.
He would not have the wives punifhed,
of thofe who defired rather to quit the fer-
vice than renounce them, nor the women
hindered from marrying again after their
death. He orders, that, for the future, no
fab-deacon mail be made, who is not ob-
liged beforehand to obferve celibacy.
He forbids to ordain a deacon bijhop, who
had a very young daughter, by whofe age
it manifeftly appeared that he had not long
obferved continence.
He pro mi fed the Emprefs Conftantina,
fome of the filings of St. Peter 's chain, if
the priejl who was appointed for filing them
could have any ; for the file would not take
hold, when thofe who defired to receive
them do not deferve to receive them.
He lent every where fome of thefe filings,
enchcfed in keys.
This St. Gregory fent Aujiin a mo?iky of
the order of St. Benedicl, with forty mif-
fionaries, French priejls and Italian monks,
to eftablifh Pope?y in England, under the
notion of preaching the Chrijlian religion.
Aujiin was the firit archbi/hop of Canter-
bury;
t 64 1
Cent, bury, he was nominated to that high officd
v*- anno 597, by Pope Gregory, with the con-
fen t of Ethelbert, King of Kent. " The
" Chrijiianity which this pretended apoftle
" and fanctified ruffian taught us, feemed
f* to confift principally in two things ; in
" keeping Eafter upon a proper day, and
€€ in beingjlaves to our fovereign Lord God
" the Pope, and to Auflin his deputy and
•' vicegerent. Such were the boafled blef-
<c fings and benefits which we received from
" the miffion and miniftry of this moil: au-
<c dacious and infolent monk. He is ftrongly
" fufpecled, as Du Pin acknowledges, of
" having excited the Saxons to fall upon
" the Britons, and to cut the throats of
" twelve hundred monks of Bangor" See
Jortin, Rem. vol. iv. p. 417. Alfo Fox,
vol. i. p. 132.
The faid St. Aufiin fent to St. Gregory,
for a refolution of fundry queftions. Among
others —
i^. Whether ecclefiajlics, who have not
the gift of continence, may marry*, and if
they do, whether they may return to fecular
affairs ?
A. They may marry, if they be not en-
gaged in holy orders, and fuch ought not to
want fubfiftence ; but they fhall be obliged
to lead a life agreeable to the eccleilaftical
ftate, and to iing the pfalms.
Q. To what degree may the faithful
marry together?
A. A Roman
t 65 ]
A. A 'Roman law, of Arcadius and Hono- Cent.
m;, permitted marriages between cou/in- VI-
germans: But S/1. Gregory did not think
thefe marriages lawful, for /w? reafons.
1. Becaufe experience pews that no chil-
dren are born of them.
2. Becaufe the divine law forbids them.
£. Where?
This St. Aujlin fent alfo to St. Gregory
for a refolution of fundry very filthy quef-
tions; which, with the arifwers to them,
may be found in Du Pin, vol. v. p. 93.
Eng. Tranfi Likewife an account of the
monftrous lyes which St. Gregory publifhed
in four books, p. 98, 99. See alfo p. 92.
Lucius Charinus
Says, that the God of the Jews was
a God of wickednefs — that, on the contrary,
Christ is a God of goodnefs— He con-
demns marriage, and looks upon generation
as the work of the devil.
N. B. Let thofe think on this, who
talk of a new law of Christ, more pure
and holy than the law of the Old Tefca-
ment, and who reprefent the God of the
Jews as allowing polygamy, and Christ
as calling it adultery. — Let them confider,
that, frequently, there may be a verbal,
where there is little real, difference.
Vol. III. F Council
[ 66 ]
Council of Agatha, anno 506.
Can. i. Renews the prohibitions of the
antient canons about the ordinations of biga-
mijls, and of thofe who had married wi-
dows. It permits thofe who are already
ordained priejis and deacons, though they
be bigamijls, or married to widows, to retain
the name of their order, but deprives them
of the exercife of xhziv function.
Can. 9. The laws of the Popes Innocen-
tius and Siricius, about the celibacy of priejis
and deacons, mall be obferved.
Council of Orleans, anno 511.
Can. 21. A monk who quits the monaf-
tery and marries, can never enter into holy
orders.
Council of Gerund a, anno 517.
Can. 6. All the orders of clergymen,
from bijhops down to fub- deacons, are for-
bidden to cohabit with their wives, or if
they will dwell with them, they are com-
manded to have with them one of their
brethren, who can give teftimony of their
continence.
Can. 8. None mall be admitted into the
clergy, who have had carnal dealings with
a woman, after the death of their wife.
Council
[ 6/ ]
Council of Epaone, anno 517. Cent.
VI.
Can. 2 and 3. Renew the canons againft '—*
the ordination of bigamijls, and thofe who
have done penance.
Can. 21. Forbids toconfecrate J widows
for deaconejfes ; infomuch that if widows
are willing to be converted, i. e. to lead a
religious life, the benediction of penance
(hall only be given to them*
Can. 25. Forbids to place the reliques
of faints in country chapels, unlefs there
be clergy in the neighbouring parifh, who
can honour them, by finging in thefe cha-
pels from time to time.
Can. 30. None (hall marry a coujin-ger-
man or the iffue of a coujin-german.
Can. 32. Separates from the church the
wife of a priejl or deacon who marries,
and him that efpoufes her, until they be
parted.
Can. 34. Impofes two years penance on
him who puts his Jlave to death by his own
authority.
Can. 40. The bijhops who will not ob-
ferve thefe canons, (hall be guilty both
before God and their brethren.
% St. Paul and this council are at irreconcileable
variance. See 1 Tim. v. 9.
F 2 Council
[ 68 ]
C^T' Council of Lerida or Ilerda, anno 524-
Can. 1. Forbids clergymen to fried human
bloody under penalty of being deprived of
the communion for two years.
Can. 2. Impofes /even years penance
upon thofe men or women that murder in-
fants conceived and born in adultery. If
they be clergymen, they alfo fhall be put
under penance, and not be reftored again
to their order : they fhall only be permitted,
after feven years, to fing in the quire. But
as to thofe who give drugs for committing
thefe * deteflable crimes, 'tis faid they lhall
not receive the communion till death.
Can.
* The fyftem which the church was erecting on
the demolition of the divine law, was attended with
the moft fatal and dreadful confequences, fuch as
will never be got rid of, 'till the laws of the Creator
fhall be once more fully reftored among us.
Horace's fable of Prometheus, bears no little refem-
blance to the cafe before us, and may eafily be para-
phrafed to our purpofe.
Audax Japeti genus
Ignem fraude mala gentihus intulit.
Pojl ignem at her i a domo
Subduclum, macies, iff nova febrium
Terrts incubuit cohors :
Semotique prius tarda neceffttas
Lethi corripuit gradum.
When men of Japhet's daring race
The laws of Heaven could efface,
And fubftitute their ozvn ,
Of murders dire a ghaftiy brood,
And crimes, the impious fraud purfu'd,
'Till then almoft unknown.
Opprefs'd
[ 69 ]
Can. 6. He who has defiled a widow. Cent.
or a nun, fhall be excommunicated, the 72z/;z _ ___
fhall alfo be excommunicated, unlefs (he part
from him, in which cafe fhe fhall be put
under public penance.
Fourth Council of Arles, anno 524.
Can. 3. Renews again the prohibition
fo often repeated, not to ordain a penitent
or a bigamiji*
Second Council of Toledo, anno 531.
Can. 1. Concerns infants which the pa-
rents offer to be clergymen. It ordains,
that, at the age of eighteen, they fhall be
afked, in the prefence of the clergy and
people, what is their defign ; and if they
promife to obferve cbajlity, they fhall be
made fub- deacons at the age of twenty. If
they difcharge this miniflry well, they
fhall be deacons at twenty-five; but good
heed fhall be taken that they do not mar-
ry, or that they keep not company with
women, and if they be convicted of doing
it, they fhall be looked upon as facrilegious
perfons, and turned out of the church.
Opprefs'd with fhame, o'erwhelm'd with fear,
The teeming ?nother will not dare
Her infant's life to fave ;
The dagger's point its blood fhall (tain,
Or the flow poifon's deadly bane
Shall make her womb its grave.
F3 As
[ 7° ]
As to thofe who will not oblige them-
felves to obferve celibacy, they (hall be left
to their liberty; but they lhall not be pro-
moted to holy orders, until fuch time as
they (hall renounce the ufe of marriage ', after
they are arrived to the age of maturity.
Second Council of Orleans, anno 533.
Can. 8. A deacon who is married, being
in captivity, cannot be reftored to his mi-
niflry.
Can. 17. Women who have received
the benediction given to deacons cmtrary to
the canons, fhall be turned out of commu-
nion, if it be proved that they marry: yet
if, upon admonition of the bijhop, they
ceafe to cohabit with their hufbands, they
fhall be received into communion, after
they have done penance.
Can. 18. The deacons bleffing fhall no
more be given to women.
Council of Clermont in Arvernia,
anno 535.
Can. 13. Priejis and deacons fhall live
in celibacy, and if they te found to keep
company with their wives, after they are
promoted to thefe dignities, they fhall be
deprived of them.
A man muft not marry his wife's Jijiers
coujin-german, or the ijfue of her coujin-
german.
7 Third
f 71 ]
Third Council of Orleans, anno C'<8. Cent,
, VI.
Can. 6. Forbids ordaining thofe who
have twice married.
Can. 7. If clergymen who have been or-
dained with their own con fen t, being un-
manned, do afterwards marry, they mall be
excommunicated. If they were ordained
againft their will, they mall only be de-
fofed, and the bijhop who ordained them
be fufpended for one year.
Clergymen who commit adultery, (hall be
fhut up in a monaftery all their life-time,
yet without being deprived of communion.
Can. 10. A man muft not marry his
coufin-german or her ijfue.
Can. 33. An imprecation againft thofe
who obferve not thefe canons.
Fourth D°, anno 541.
Can. 10. Sufpends a bi/ljop from the fa-
cerdotal fundtion, who had ordained a bi-
gamifi, or him that married a widow.
Can. 17. Priefts and deacons mail not
have a bed and chanfber common with their
wives.
Fifth D°, anno 549.
Can. 4. Clergymen who are obliged to
celibacy, and do not obferve it, mail be de-
pofed.
Can. 19. If women who come to a mo-
naftery and take the habit, do afterwards
F 4 marry,
Cent*
VI.
[ 7* ]
marry, they (hall be excommunicated, toge*
ther with thofe that marry them: but if
they part, and do penance, they (hall be
reftored to communion.
Second Council of Tours, anno 567.
Can. 12. The bijhop mall live with his
wife as with his Jijler, without giving any
caufe of fufpicion.
Can. 14. Forbids priejis and monks to
take any perfon to bed with them. It or-
ders that monks mould not lie, two or
three in feveral cells, but in one common
hall, where fome fhall watch while others
take their reft.
N. B. This canon was, for certain reafons,
a very neceffary one.
Can. 15. Monks who go out of their
monaftery to marry, fhall be parted and
put under penance.
Can. 19. Hinders the clergy who are
obliged to celibacy, from lying with their
wives.
Can. 20. Renews the penalties on thofe
who marry virgins confe crated to God, or
who confent to thefe marriages.
Synod of Antisiodorum.
Can. 12. The encharijl fhall not be given
to the dead, nor the kifs of peace.
Can. 20. Priejis, deacons, and fub-dear
cons, who fhall have children, fhall be de-
pofed.
Can.
[ 73 ]
Can. 24. It is not lawful for an abbot Cent.
or monk to marry. ^*-
Can. 36, 37. Women not to receive the
eucharijl with the naked hand, or to touch
the linen cloth which covers the body of
our Lord.
Can. 42. Women to have the dominical
for receiving the communion. Some think
this is the linen upon which they receive
the body of Jesus Christ, being forbidden
to receive it with their naked hand. Others
think it a kind of veil which covers the
head. Whatever it be, this fynod declares,
that, if they have it not, they mail wait
'till another Sunday to receive the commu-
nion.
Council of Mascon, anno 581.
Can. 3. No women mail enter the cham-
ber of a bi/Jjop, but in the prefence of two
priejls or two deacons.
Can. 11. Clergymen, obliged to celibacy,
fhall be depofed if they violate the obliga-
tion.
Can. 12. Virgins confecrated to God,
who marry, mall be excommunicated, bcth
they and their hufbands, till death. If
they part, they mail continue under pe-
nance, during the pleafure of the bifloop.
Council of Lyons, anno 583.
Can. 1. Clergymen forbidden to have any
familiarity with their wives.
Second
Cent.
VI.
[ 74 ]
Second Council of Mascon, anno 585.
Can. 16. Forbids the widows of fub->
deacons, exorcijis, and acolythifls, to marry
again.
This council, which was very nume-
rous, confifting of 6 archbifhops, 37 bi-
fhops, 20 deputies from other bifhops,
and 3 bifhops who had no fee, ordained —
in
Can. 15. That laymen mould (hew re-
fpecl to clergymen, and to falute them if
they-mcct them on horfeback in the way;
to light off their horfe and falute them, if
they meet them on foot.
Third Council Gf Toledo, anno 589.
Can. 5. Renews the laws of celibacy for
priejls and deacons.
Can. 9. Leaves widows and maids at liber-
ty to marry or keep celibacy, and excommuni-
cates thofe who hinder them from obferving
their vow of chajlity.
Can. 17. Againft thofe fathers and mo*>
thers who put their children to death.
Council of Barcelona, anno 599.
Can. 4. If a virgin who has renounced
the cuftoms of the world, and promifed to
obferve continence, or any other perfon who
has defired of the prieji benediclione?n pceni-
tentice — i. e. the bleffing for leading a reli-
gious life, for this is often called pani-
tentia
f 75 ]
tentia and ccnverfio — do marry, or, being Cent,
taken away by force, w 1 not part from
their rav (hers, thev' fhc li continue ex-
■ eluded from the communion of the jaith-
Jul, and (hall not have fo much as the
comfort of converfation -—This canon may
alfo be underltood literally of penance, be-
caufe it was not lawful for penitents to
make uje of marriage (if married) or to
marry (if fingle).
CENTURY VII.
St. Isidore
Succeeded to the bifhopric of Sevil
about the year 595. He is Lkewife for the
celibacy of the clergy He fays, that a-6i-
Jhop ought always to have lived fingle, or
to have had but one wife — that priejisy
deacons •, and fu b -deacons fhould be bound to
continency. Among other works of difci-
pline, he wrote the rules of the monks, ac-
commodated to the ufe of his country.
St. Columbanus,
An Irifh monk. He contended, that the
celibacy of fup-rior clerks was commanded
— that married perfons fhould abfLtin from
the uje of marriage for three days before the
communion — that men were to be put to
penance for bigamy and ufury — that wo-
men
Cent<
VII.
[ 76 ]
Cvt7' men might receive the facrament with a
black veil on — that, in cafe of neccfjity>
confejjion might be made to God.
St. Eligius,
A great lover of ecclefiaftical difcipline,
and follower of the traditions of the fa-
thers, Cyprian, Aujlin> Gregory ', &c. — how-
ever, he exceeded them all; for, in one of
his homilies, he lays it down, that "it is
" as great a crime for a man to lie with
" his wife, as to eat flefh in Lent" This
may eafily be believed to be very true; but,
as St. Eligius meant it, v/ho believed that
eating flefh in Lent was a very horrible fin,
it certainly exceeds, if poffible, the folly of
all the preceding^/;?/! and fathers put to-
gether.
Theodorus of Canterbury,
Ordained bifhop by Pope Vitalian, and
fent into England in 668, to govern the
church of Canterbury. He laboured much
in the eftablifhing of the faith and church-
difcipline in England.
In the eleventh chapter of the ritual at-
tributed to him, there are many queftions
about married perfons. It is faid there,
they ought to abftain from the ufe of ma-
trimony three days before the communion —
forty days before Eafter— forty days before
and after childbearing. That a lawful
marriage cannot be diflolved, but with the
content
[ 77 1
confent of both parties; but either of Cent.
them may give his confent, that the other
may withdraw into a monaftery, and then,
that the other may marry again, as if he
had not been married before. If the huf-
band be made a flave, the wife may marry
at the year's end. That a man may marry
again within one month after his wife's
death, and a woman within one year af-
ter her hufband's deceafe. That a woman,
who hath vowed widowhood, cannot marry
again ; if fhe mould, it mall be free for
the hufband to let her fulfil her vow or
not. That the bijhop may difpenfe with
vows. It is free for one baptized to keep
or put away his wife being a Pagan. If
a woman forfake her hufband, within Jive
years after he may take another wife. If
fhe be carried away captive, he may marry
another one year after — but if fhe cometh
again, he ihall leave this loft. It is lawful,
among the Greeks, to marry in the third
degree, and among the Romans in thzjiftb
only.
Children are in the power of their fa-
ther 'till fix teen years old, but, that time
being paft, they may enter into a religious
order*
Council of Egara, anno 614.
Confirmed the decree made in that of
Huesca, concerning the celibacy of the
clergy ,
Fifth
[ 78 1
Fifth Council of Paris.
Can. i. The antient canons fhall fre
kept.
Can. 14. Prohibits marriage with a
maiden that has taken a religious habit.
It excommunicates thofe that contradt fuch
marriages, 'till they feparate themfelves.
Council held in France, about anno 614,
the place uncertain.
Can. 12. Forbids prejbyters and deacons
to marry, upon pain of being turned out
of the church.
Second Council of Sevil, anno 619.
Can. 4. Is againft the unlawful ordina-
tions made at Ajligi, where perfons that
had marred widows had been ordained
clerks. The ordinations are declared nullf
and they are forbidden to be raifed to the
order of deacons.
Council of Rheims under Sonnatius.
Can, 7. Threatens to excommunicate
thofe who fhall violently take away from
the church the criminals fled into it.
The original of this privilege, allowed by
the Heathens, and afterward by the Chrif-
tians, to their temples or churches, was cer-
tainly taken from the divine conftitution
given to Mofes, refpedling the Jix cities of re-
fuge in the Jeivifi nation (Numb. xxxv. 6.)
though
[ 79 1
though not altogether conformable to it: *?£??
for Mofes made the cities only a refuge, and
that only for fuch manflayers as had killed
their neighbours unawares; but the Heathens
made their temples an afylum for all man-
ner of wickednefles. So Livy fays of the
afylum ere&ed by Romulus at Rome : Afy-
lum aperuit, quo quifquis perfugerit, ab omni
noxa liber at us effet. " He opened an afy-
" lum, where, whofoever fled to it, fhould
" be freed from every crime." So Hero*
dotus fpeaks of Hercules 's afylum at Athens.
Thefe refuge- temples were afterwards much
increafed among the Heathen, and at length,
about the year 300, came to be in ufe among
the Chri/lians; for they thought it a fhame,
that the temples of the Heathen gods fhould
enjoy fo great a privilege, as to be refuges
for the oppreffed, and the Chriflian temples
fhould be deftitute of it : whereupon they
were made fuch by the edidt of Theodofus
and Valentinian, and alfo by the canons of
the councils. But although fuch grants
might be of very good advantage among
Chrijiians, being kept within due bounds
of the firft inftitution, to be a protection
for the innocent and oppreffed '; yet, as they
have been, and ftill are, abufed in the Ro-
man and other churches, being made a re-
fuge for murderers (ajfafjins) rebels, and other
enormous criminals, they are grievous both
to the church and all civil focieties. See
Editor's
VII.
[ 8o ]
Cent. Editor's note on DuPin, Eng. edit, vol.vi.'
VII.
■■: P- 57-
Can. 23. Forbids ravifhing widows or
virgins confecrated to God.
N. B. The word ravi/hing means taking
them away.
Fourth Council of Toledo'.
Can. 19. Forbids advancing thofe to the
priejibood who have made themfelves eu-
nuchs— thofe that have had tnany wives,-
or have married widows — as alfo thofe that
have had concubines.
Can. 44. Clerks marrying widows, lhall
be feparated from them by the bijhop.
Can. 56. Diftinguifheth two forts of
widows — fomefecular, who do not leave the
fecular habit, and other religious, which
take a religious habit — and declares, it is
not lawful for thefe to marry.
Sixth Council of Toledo^ an?io 6$.
Can. 8. Explains a conftitution of St.
Gregorys, whereby they fuppofe he gave
leave to a young man, who underwent pe-
nance under fear of death, to cohabit with
his wife, till he was come to an age in
which it were eafier to live chaflly. They
fay, that if he, or fhe, that was not put to
penance, furvive, he may marry again.
Ninth
MS
l 8. ]
Ninth Council of Toledo, 6cc. Cent.
JJ VII.
Can. io. They declare the fons of cler- ■
gymen, who were obliged to celibacy, in-
capable of inheriting.
Tenth Council of Toledo, 656.
Can. 5. Decrees that thofe who leave
the habit of widowhood, after they have
worn it, ihall be excommunicated, and fliut
up in men arteries.
Fourth Council of Braga, 675.
Can. 4. Ecclefiaftical perfons are for-*
bidden to dwell with a woman, excepting
their mother only, but not their veryjijlers,
or any other near relations.
Council held at Constantinople,
anno 692.
Can. 3. Thofe of the clergy, prejbyters,
or deacons, that had married two wives, if
they will not leave that cuftom, fllall be
depofed. As to thofe whofe Jecond wives
are dead, or who have left them, they fhall
keep the honour and place of their dignity,
being forbidden only to perform the func-
tions of it, it being not fitting, that he,
who ought to heal his own wounds, fhould
My} others. As for them who had mar-
ried wido w s, or had married, being priefls,
Vol, III. G deacons,
[ 82 ]
deacons, ox fub-dt aeons, they (hall for a time
be fufpeiided from their function, . but they
grant thern the power of being rejlored
when they leave their wives, on condition,
that they (hall not be raifed to a fuperior
order. Laltlv — they ordain, that all thofe
who have been married twice after baptifm,
or have had concubines, fhall not be made
clergymen.
Can. 4. Such ecclejiaftical perfons as .(hall
company with a virgin confecrated to
God, fhall be depofed. Laymen excommu-
nicated.
Can. 5, Forbids clerks to have with them
'women, not related to them, except thofe
which the canons allow them to dwell
withal. It extends this prohibition to eu-
nuchs.
Can. 6. Forbids thofe that are in or-
ders, including the fub- deacons, to marry
after their ordination.
Can. 12. Ties the bifhops of Afric and
Lybia to the law of the celibacy.
Can. 44. Againfl monks guilty of 'forni-
cation or married.
Can. 48. The wife of him who is to be
made a bifiop, fhall be put away from him,
and fhall withdraw into a monajlery, at a
diflance from the bi/Jjop's reiidence.
Can. 83. Forbids giving the cucharijl to
the dead.
Can. 93. Condemns the marriages of
thofe
[ 83 ]
thofe men and women, who are not fure of Cent.
the death of their wives or hiijbands. But __X1L
after thofe marriages have been contracted,
and when the firft hufband comes again,
he is ordered to take his wife again.
CENTURY VIII. Cent.
St. Boniface, Archbifhop of Mestz,
about anno 719.
In letter 11, he confults the bifhop Pe-
thelmus about the cuftoms of France and
Italy > by which it was forbidden to marry
her to whole child he had been * godfather.
Whereupon he fays, that, till then, he
thought there was no harm in it, having
never found that it was forbidden by the
canons or decrees of the holy bifiops. He de-
fires him to inform him, whether he has
* When it is confidered, that godfathers and god-
mothers are to be reckoned among animalia non de-
fcripta — there bein^ 110 trace of them in the ordi-
nance of baptifm as revealed in the Bible— the impedi-
ment of marriage , which arofe from a fuppo fed fpiritual
cognation between each other and the baptized, Sec.
muft appear the more unwarrantable and abfurd — ■
But when men once depart from the icriptures, where
will they ftop ?
G 2 met
[ 84 ]
Cent, met with any thing about it in the ecclefiaf-
. JI1, tical writings.
Near the end of a letter to St. Cuthbert>
he tells him — " that it were convenient to '
" reftrain the women and virgins of Eng-
" land, from going in fuch numbers to
" Rome, became the greateft part of them
" were debauched, and caufed great fcandal
" in the whole church; for there is fcarce
" a city, faith he, in Lombardy or France,
" where there are not fome Eng/i/h women
" of a wicked life."
Pope Gregory II, anno *j\\.
He prohibits marriages between perfons
related in the fourth degree. He enjoins
the bijhops not to ordain fuch as have been
twice married — not to fuffer any man to
have more wives than one — to efteem virgi-
nity more highly than marriage.
Pope Gregory III, anno jyi,
Forbids marriage to the fev en th genera^
tion.
Prohibits a widower to marry above
twice.
Pope Zacharv, annojd.1.
Boniface, a German bifhop, writes to Za-
chary on many fubjects: among the reft,
. be
-
[ «5 ]
he defires to know what he mould do with Cent.
thofe bifjops, priejls, and deacons, who lived VIII.
in many diforders and debaucheries'? Za-
cha?y anfwers him, that he ought not to
fuffer them to perform the functions and
offices that belong to their orders and de-
grees.
N. B. St. Paul would have anfwered—
If they cannot contain, let them marry.
Boniface alfo enquires, whether it be
true, that one of his country had obtained
a difpenfation from Gregory III. fZacharys
predeceffbrj to marry his uncle's widow ,
which had been his cou/in-german's wife,
and had received the veil? The Pope an-
fwers— That his predecejfor did not grant
fuch a licence, becaufe the holy fee allows
nothing contrary to the constitutions of
the councils, and the holy fathers.
He prohibited a man from marrying his
father s god-daughter, becaufe of the fpiri-
tual confanguinity \
St. John Damascene
Highly extols the ftate of virginity.
St. Chrodegand, Bifhop of Mentz,
Can. 15. Clerks guilty of heinous crimes ;
fuch as murders, adultery, robbery, or the
like, fhall be chaftifedon their body; fhall
be exiled, or caft into prifon, as long as
the bifhop pleafes; and mail moreover do
public penance.
G 3 Pope
[ 86 ]
y\ll' Pope Stephen II. anno 752.
Can. 2. Excufes a prieft who had bap-
tifed with wine inftead of water; and he
intimates that baptifm to be valid, in thefe
words : Infantes jic permaneant in ipfo bap'
tifmo — " The infants fhall fo abide in that
" baptifm."
Charlemagne.
This Emperor may be reckoned among
the Latin ecclefiaftical authors, as well
as Conjlantine among the Greeks, for he
not only laboured in the eftablifhment of
church difcipline, but moreover he made
feveral laws, wrote letters, and caufed fome
treatifes of ecclefiaftical matters to be com-
pofed: thefe are called Capitularies.
He empowers bi/Jjops to order the life of
widows.
That they {hall obferve the canons con-
cerning the inanner of veiling virgins. The
prohibition of contracting marriages, was
extended to the fourth degree of confan-
guini':y.
Women were forbidden to come near the
altars.
They' forbad to receive children into
monafkries without the parents confent,
and to veil virgins before thirty years of
age, and widows before the thirtieth day
after their hufband's deceafe.
Prayers for the dead much practifed.
Council
[ 87 ]
Council of Barkhamstead, aimo 697. Cent,
Can 3. Adulterers, if laymen* put to 1
-penance — if clergymen, to be depefed.
Can. 4. Foreigners, guilty of that crime 9
fhall be expelled the realm.
Can. 5. and 6. Thofe of the nobility,
overtaken in that Jin, mail be fined in an
hundred pence, and the peafant in fifty.
Can. 7. An ecclefiaftical perfon guilty
of adultery, if he break off that habit, mail
continue in the priejlhood, provided that he
hath not malicioufly refufed to adminifter
baptifm, or that he be not a drunkard.
Council of Rome, under Gregory II.
anno 721.
Can. 1 — 11. Againft them that marry
their kindred, perfons confecrated to God,
or the wives of priejls and deacons, or who
ileal away widows or maidens.
Can. 14 — 16. Againft a private man
who had married a deaconejs.
Council of Germany under Carlo-
man.
Can. '6. He 'or (lie, that hath com-
mitted fornication, fhall be imprifoned,
and fhall &o penance there with bread and
water ; and if he be a prieft, he fhall be
Jkut up for two years, having been whipt
till the blood comes ; and then the bijhop
fhall lay on him what penance he pleafes.
G4 If
[ 83 ]
Cent- If it be a fimple clerk or monk, he fhall be
— whipt three tunes, and then ihut up for one
year* The nuns, which have received the
veil, fhall be ufed after the fame manner,
and fhaved.
N. B. What an inftance of tyranny over
their fellow- creatures, were thefe people
to exhibit ! they prevent them from ufing
the means, and remedy, which God hath
commanded in his word, and then punifh
them moil feverely, for the natural confe-
quences of their own prohibition ! This
obfervation will flill hold good to this
hour, as will be obferved in its proper
place.
Can. 7. Enjoins monks and nuns ex-
actly to follow St. Benedict's rule.
Council of Rome under Pope Zachary,
anno 743*
Can. 1. Bifiops fhall not dwell with
women.
Can. 5. Anathematized} thofe who mar-
ry a pr lefts or a deacon s wife, a nun, or
a religious woman, or their godmother.
Can. 6. Forbids marriage with a coufin-
germ an,
Can. 7. Anathematizeth thofe who fteal
maidens and widows, to marry them.
Can. 8. Againft thofe clerks or monks
that let their hair grow.
Council
[ 89 ]
Council of Soissons, anno 744. Cent.
. VIII.
Can. 8. Clerks fhall have no women in. \
their houfes, except their mother, Jtftery or
niece.
Council of Verberie, anno 752.
Can. 1. Thofe that marry in the third
degree of confanguinity, fhall be put a/un-
der, and, after having done penance, they
may marry others. Thofe in the fourth
degree only fhall not be feparated, but only
be put to penance if they be married 3 or
otherwife not fuffered to marry.
Can. 2. If any man hath had com-
merce with his daughter-i?i-laWj he fhall
dwell no longer, neither with the mother
jior with the daughter ; and neither the
daughter , nor he, fhall marry others , but the
mother may marry another.
Can, 3. If iprejbyter marry his niece 9
he fliall be obliged to leave her, and lofe.
his degree. If any body elfe marry her,,
he fhall be obliged to leave her, but fhall
have liberty tp marry another.
Can, 5. If a wife confpire the huf-
band's death, he may leave her, and marry
another.
Can. 7. Slaves, who have a concubine r
may leave her to marry their matter's maid-
fervant, though they do better if they keep
the firft.
Can. 8. Permits the majler to oblige
his
t 90 ]
Cent, his Jlave to marry his maid-fervant , if he
hath had any carnal knowledge of her.
Can. 9. Imports, that, if men be forced
to go away from the place of their habi-
tation, and their wives refufe to follow
them, without any other reafon but their
love to their own country, it fhall be free
for thofe men, whofe wives have thus left
them, to marry others ; but not for the
wives to marry again.
Can. 10. Forbids him to marry who
hath lain with his mother-in-law, and the
mother-in-law likewife, and permits the
father-in-law to marry again.
Can. 1 1. Inflicts the fame punifhment
on defilers of their daughter-in-law, or
jijler -in-law.
Can. 12. He that lies with two Jifters,
fhall have neither, though one of them
were his wife.
Can. 17. Permits a woman, who com-
plains that her hufband never did cohabit
with her, to try the proof of the crofs ; and
if it appears, by this trial, that the thing
is fo, then fhe may do what Jhe pleafeth.
Can. 19. The flave who is fet at liberty
may put away his wife, being a bond-wo-
man, and marry another.
Council of Verneville, annoy 55.
Can. 15. Enjoins both nobles and the
common people to be married publicly .
Council
[ 9i 1
Council of Metz, anno 7C6. Cent.
. VIII.
Can. l. Againft incejis committed either 1
with a per/on confecrated to God, a Jhe-
gojip, a god- mother, whether at baptifm or
confirmation, or with a coufin-german.
Can. 2. Appoints the depqfition of the
fuperior clergy, convicted of thefe crimes,
and the inferior are to be whipped or /;#-
prifoned.
Second Council of Nice, a?ino 754.
Can. 22. Forbids monks to eat with
women, unlefs it be needful for their fpiri-
tual good, or upon a journey, yea though
they be their relations.
Council of Aquileia, anno 791.
Can. 4. Againft women s cohabiting with
clergymen.
Can. 8. Prohibits unlawful marriages
between kindred, and clandejline marriages.
It ordains that no marriages mall be con-
tracted, but between parties which fhall be
known net to be a-kih ; that there fhall
be an interval between betrothing and mar-
riage \ that the prefence of the priejl fhall
be requifite ; that kindred, which fhall be
found to have married within the degrees
prohibited [by the canons'] fhall be fepa-
rated, and put to penance — that, if it be
poffible, they fhall remain unmarried ; but
yet, if they will have children, or if they
cannot
[ 92 ]
Cent, cannot keep their virginity, they mall be
VIII. permitted to marry others, and their chil-
dren deemed legitimate.
N. B. In this Popi/h law we may trace
one fource of the delay of marriage by afk-
ing banns — the vacating clandejline mar-
riages— the prefence of a priejl made ne-
ceflary — all which, however improved in
later times, owed their exiftence to PopiJIj
contrivance, and all for the advancement
of priejlly emolument and authority.
Can. 10. Forbids a man or woman,
which have been divorced for adultery, to
marry again. It affirms, that Jesus Christ
in this cafe only permitted a man to put
away his wife, but * not to marry another^
and confirms this opinion by the authority
of St. Jerom ! The common practice was
then contrary to this law.
Can. 1 1 . Virgins or widows, which have
promifed to live Jingle, and have taken the
habit, though they have not received the
confecration from the bifiop, if they do fe-
cretly marry, or fuffer themfelves to be de-
filed, they mail be punimed according to
the rigour of the civil laws: and befides
this, they mall be put a/under, and do pe-
nance all their life-time, unlefs the bifiop,
confidering the greatnefs of their repent-
*'Doubtlefs Matt. v. 32. and xix. 9. are alluded
to. — Here is one proof, among many others, of the
perverfion and abufe of thofe texts.
[ 93 1
ance, fhew them fome favour ; but at the Ce?T"
point of ^<?//6 they fhall not be deprived of
the viaticum.
VIII.
CENTURY IX. Cent.
IX.
Council of Metz, anno 813.
Can, 55. Forbids parents prefenting
their own children at the font ; or marrying
one's god-daughter, or one's partner in the
furetyflnp at a child's baptifm, or even the
perfon, whofe fon or daughter one has
brought to be confirmed.
Council of Mentz, anno 847.
Forbids all marriages, whether incefluous,
or within the degrees of confanguinity
prohibited by the laws.
Council of Pavia, anno 850.
Can. 9. Forbids the benediction to be
given to thofe women, who marry after they
have been deflowered.
Marriage is forbidden to thofe who are
under penance.
Can. 10. Declares that men cannot law-
fully marry the perfon s they have forced ;
and allows fuch perfons no abfolution, but
juft at the point of death. See Deut. xxii.
2-8, 29.
Council
[ 94 ]
Cent. Council of Rome under Leo IV. anno 8c^t
IX. J0
Can. 29. Commands, that women, who
profeffed a religious life, mould not marry.
Can. 36. Prohibits men's putting away
their wives, and marrying others, unlefs
in cafe of adultery, and orders. If a man
and his wife are willing to part, to embrace
a religious life, they muft do it with confent
of the bijhop.
Can. 37. Forbids * polygamy.
Can. 38. Againft marriage within the
degrees forbidden .
Second Council of Tullium or Toul,
anno 860.
Can. 2. Widows or virgins devoted to
the fervice of God, who ?narry, fhall be
imprifoned, and put to penance 'till their
deatn.
Council of Worms, anno 868.
Can. 9. Contains a law of celibacy for
all in facred orders.
Can. 21. Widows who have taken the
i?rf/, prayed in the church among the pro-
feffed nuns, offered oblations with them,
and promifed to continue in that ftate, mall
never leave it.
* The authority on which this practice is forbid-
den, being the fame on which marriage itjelf is pro-
hibited, in fo many inilances unknown to the fcrip~
tures, muft, to bt fure, be truly refpc&able !
I o Can,
[ 95 ]
Can. 34. Prohibits to marry a god-?no- Cent.
ther or god-daughter. IX.
Can. 35. Condemns to the penance of
murderers, thofe women who caufe abortions
in themfelves.
Can. 36. Subjects to penance, and fe-
parates him from his wife, who hath kin
with his wife's daughter by another huf-
band.
Can. 44. Condemns adulterers to f even
years penance.
Second Council of Douzy, anno 868.
Duda, a nun, being with child by Hunt-
burtus, a prieji, an affembly of bijhops met,
and ordered _EW# that me mould be put
to penance, and fcourged by the abbefs, in
the prefence of her fjler nuns, and not
be received into communion 'till after /£-
w# years penance. They condemned two
nuns who knew of it, but did not difcover
it, to three years penance, after being mode-
rately chaftifed with the rod. It is not faid
what became of Hunt hurt us.
Qu ? How many child- murders muft fuch
proceedings be the occafion of? The canons
which we find againft//^/?, and caufing abor-
tion > are fad proofs of their frequency.
Council of Troyes, 878.
They made a canon, forbidding all Chrif
tians to marry zfecond wife while the firfi
is living.
Council
[ 96 ]
Gent. Council of Cologne, anno Syj.
: — Revived the canons of councils againrt un-
lawful marriages.
Council of Mentz.
Can. io. Enjoins clergymen abfolutely
to have no woman to cohabit with them.
Can. 26. Forbids that widows mall be
eafily admitted to the veil — if they embrace
a fingle life, it orders, that they be put into
the monasteries, where they mall live regu-
larly with the nuns. If they violate their
profeffion, they (hall be punifhed canonically.
They renew the canon of Eleria> made
concerning virgins devoted to God, which
violate their virginity.
Council of Metz, anno uncertain.
Can. 5. Priefts mall have no women
with them ; no, not fo much as their mo-
ther or fifer.
Can. 10. Excommunicates fome perfons
that had gelt a prie/l, who would oblige
one of their kinfwomen to return to her
hufband.
Council of Vienna, anno 892.
Can. 5. Priefs Ihall have no women
with them.
Council of Tribur, anno 895.
Can. 5. He that kills aprief, ihall da
rive
r 97 j
live years penance. After this he may Cent.
come into the church, but fhall not com- IX-
municate 'till Jive more years be ex-
pired.
Can. 12. Baptifm fhall not be admi-
niftered but at Eafler and Whitfuntide.
N. B. There are many canons to this
purpofe in the preceding centuries, but
they always add — u except in cafes of necef-
fity-"
Can. 23. Revives the laws againft
thofe who marry virgins confecrated to
God.
Can. 33. Revives thofe canons, which
exclude fuch perfons from holy orders as
have made themfelves eunuchs.
Qu? If, as the clergy were condemn-
ed to celibacy, thefe were not the propereft
perfons for clergymen ?
Can. 40. Declares the marriage of a
man and a widow null, who have com-
mitted adultery together in the life of the
hulband, under promife of marriage.
Can. 41. If an impotent perfon marry
a woman* and his brother abufe her, they
fhall be parted, and fhe (hall not have
commerce with either of them ; yet the
bifhop may permit her to marry again,
after the guilty perfon hath done penance.
Can. 43. If a perfon commit fornica-
tion with a woman, who hath lain with
his fon or brother without his knowledge,
and he depofeth upon oath that he is not
Vol. III. H confcious
[ 93 ]
Cent, confcious of any fuch thing, he may marry,
after he hath done penance.
Can. 47. Allows him who is godfather
to a man's child, to marry his widow, if
fhe was not his godmother.
Can. 48. If a man by chance marry
the daughter of his godmother, he may
keep her, and live with her as his wife.
Can. 49. Forbids, that fuch as have
committed adultery together fhould ever
marry, dwell, or have fociety together.
If they have any eftate, it fhall be kept for
the adulterous offspring.
Can. 51. Repeats the prohibitions made
to an adulterer, to marry the woman after
her hufband's death.
Can 54 and 58. Appointsy<k;<?# years pe-
nance for wilful murderers. — Among other
things — he fhall not lie with his wife. See
Gen. ix. 6.
Council of Nantes.
The canons which bear the name of
this council, are a collection of conftitutions
made at different places.
Can. 3. Forbids a prieji 'to have any
woman with him, yea, thofe that are ac-
cepted by the canons. It forbids alfo wo-
men to approach the altar.
Can. 12. Allows a man to put away
his wife for adultery, but not to marry
another in her life-time. He may be re-
conciled
[ 99 ]
conciled to her, but on condition that he Cent
does penance with her. IX.
Can. 13, Three years penance for Jingle
fornication.
Can. 14. Seven years penance on him
that commits adultery, if married. Five
on him that is not married.
Can. 17. "Lays fourteen years penance
on a voluntary and public murderer. Five
years he (hall be feparated from the church;
the reft of the time he may be at prayers,
but without offering or communicating. See
Gen. ix. 6.
The hijhops of Germany, in a letter to
Ptf/f John VIII. call JRtf#/<? — " the holy
M apojlolic fee — the original of the Chris-
€t tian religion — and the fource of
" PRIESTLY DIGNITY. "
Pope Nicholas I. anno 858.
Proves, by the canons, that thofe who
have married two Ji/fers, may not marry
any more for the future.
That thofe who have married their rela-
tions, and are upon that account divorced,
cannot marry as long as both of them live :
but it is not forbidden when one of them
dies.
That marriage ought not to be forbidden
abfolutely to fuch as have committed the
crime of fodomy, provided they repent of
their iin, and have left off that curfed
habit.
H 2 N. B.
'[ i°° ]
Cent. N. B. This curfed habit is puniflied le&
rigoroufly, than the having married two
jijlers.
Touching the ceremonies of marriage,
he fays, that, after betrothing, the prieft
ought to caufe the perfons to come into the
church with their offerings ft. e. to the
priejij and there give them his benediftion
and the veil, which is not to be given in
fecond marriages. That, being gone out of
the church, they fhould wear crowns upon
their heads. Thefe are the ordinary and
folemn ceremonies ; which, as the Greeks
fay of theirs y need not neverthelefs be al-
ways obferved. That confent, according
to the laws, might fuffice, and that, if
that be wanting, the reft fignifies no-
thing.
N. B. This article is very important —
it contains an authentic record, even upon
the teftimony of a Pope, that in the ninth
century, facerdotal benediction, or even in-
terpojition, or other ceremony of an eccle-
fiajlical kind, were not neceflary to the va-
lidity of marriage; but that confent of the
parties, according to the laws, both in the
eajiern and wejiern empire, was fufficient.
He forbids marrying in Lent. Leaves
it to the bijhop, or prieji, to determine,
after what manner, a man fhould live with
his wife during that time.
He exprefsly forbids a man to have two
wives at a time. Permits all believers to
make
[ ioi ]
make the fign of the crofs upon the table, Cent.
and to give a benediction thereon in the IX-
ab fence of the priefl.
Pope John VIII. 872,
Decides, that a man ought not to be
parted from his wife, becaufe he had bap-
tized his child himfelf in a cafe of necef-
That it is not permitted to Chriftmns to
marry their kindred, fo long as they can
make out any relation. That all thofe
who are fo married, and will keep their
wives, or thofe that ihall fo marry for the
future, to be fubjecl: to the church's ana-
thema by apostolic authority, and for-
bids all priejls to give them the facrament,
'till they have done penance.
He alfo declares it unlawful to have two
wives, or to have a wife and a concubine at
the fame time.
CENTURY X. Cent.
X.
Du Pin opens this century, with an ac-
count of the quarrel between Leo, Empe-
ror of the Eaji, and Nicholas, the patriarch
of Conjiantinople, who refuled to marry Leo
to a fourth wife. Having had three before,
but no iffue male by them, he, being de-
firous of zfon to fucceed him, married a
fourth wife; but Nicholas refuiing to marry
him to this lady, whofe name was Zoe, a
H 3 prejbyter,
[ 102 ]
Cent, prefiyter, whofe name was Thomas, ven«*
x- tured to do it. Nicholas depofes Thomas
for this, and excommunicates the Emperor
himfelf.
Leo had recourfe to the Pope (Sergius)
for his approbation of the ?narriage, which,
becaufe fuch fucceffive marriages were to->
lerated in the Weft, he eafily obtained.
But Nicholas the patriarch, continuing ob-
ftinate, would not acknowledge the Empe-
ror's marriage as valid. The Emperor ba-
nifhed him, and placed Enthymius in his
room. Nicholas wrote to the Pope, and
ftiffly maintained, contrary to the practice
and opinion of the church of Rome, that
to marry a third or fourth time, was abfo-
lutely unlawful. But the patriarch, re-*
ceiving no anfwer from Rome, wrote ano-
ther letter to Pope John, wherein he of-
fers, to obferve a fair correfpondence and
union with the holy fee, provided he would
own, that a fourth marriage was not to be
permitted to the Emperor, unlefs by way
of indulgence, or confideration of his royal
perfon, and that, in itfelf it was unlawful.
The clergy were divided into two parties,
one decb.ring for Nicholas, the other for
Enthymius ; but were re- united in the year
920 ; and made a treaty of union in an
ecclefiaftical convocation, by which (with-
out difannulling any thing that was part)
they abfolutely prohibited for the future a
fourth marriage, under pain of excommuni-
cation*
X.
[ i°3 1
cation* to be inflicted on thofe who fliould Cent.
contract fuch marriage, and to be in force
during the continuance of fuch marriage.
They likewife inflicted a penance, of Jive
years, on fuch as mould marry a third
time, being above forty years old : and a
penance of three years on fuch as mould
re- marry, after thirty years of age, if they
had any children by their former mar-
riages.
Anno 956.
On the death of the patriarch Theophylafi,
the Emperor conftituted Polyene! a in his
room. This patriarch had a warm difpute
with the Emperor Nicep horns Phocas, who
having married Theophanes, the widow
of the Emperor Romanns, PolyeuBa threat-
ened to excommunicate him, unlefs be
would renounce her. 1. Becaufe this was
the fecond marriage which Nicephorus had
contracted, without fubmitting to the pe-
nance due to thofe who were guilty of bi-
gamy. 2. Becaufe it was reported, that
Nicephorus had ftood godfather to one of
Theophanes's children.— -The Emperor pro-
pofed thefe queftions to the bijhops who
were then in Conjiantmople, and to the
chief of his council ; who left him at liberty
to keep Theophanes as his wife: and Po-
lyeucta himfelf did'not infift any more on
the diffolution of the marriage, after the Em-
peror had allured him upon oath, that he had
H 4 never
[ io4 ]
Cent, never ftood god-father to any of Theophaneis
child
ren,
Leo VIL
Declares that marriage between a man
and his god-mother or god-daughter is for-*
bidden,
Thofe priejis who marry publicly, fhall
be deprived of their dignity; but their
children (hall not be endamaged thereby.
Atto, Bifliop of Verceil,
Shews, that, by the ecclejiajiical and civil
laws, marriage is prohibited to thofe who
had contra&ed zfpiritual affinity by baptifm-,
contrary to the advice of that bijhop, who
found fault that one who had married his
god-father s daughter, was divorced from
her, and excommunicated, 'till fuch time
as he made his appearance in a court of
judicature, before the archbijhop and bi-
flops.
Ambrofe, a prieft of Milan, writes to
Atto, to tell him, that thefe forts of mar-
riages were likewife prohibited in his
church. Atto writes to ecclefiaftics in his
own diocefe, againft thofe who kept com-
pany with lewd women, with whom they
maintained a fcandalous familiarity, and
whom they kept and maintained out of the
revenues of the church.
About the end of this century, Robert,
King
[ io5 ]
King of France, being a widower, by the
death of Queen Lutgarde, his Jirjl wife,
had married Bertha, fitter to Radulpbus
the fimpk, King of Burgundy, who was
the widow of Eudes, firft Count of CW-
/r*\r. But forafmuch as fhe was his kinf-
woman, and he had formerly flood god*
father to one of her children, though
he had taken the advice of feveral bi-
Jhops of his kingdom about it, yet the
Pope oppofed this marriage as null, and
contracted between perfons, who, according
to law, could not marry together. King
Robert did what he could to confirm this
marriage, and fpake about it to Leo, the
legate of Gregory V. in France ; who made
him believe, that he would obtain of the
Pope what he defired, provided he wrould
caufe Arnulpkus to be reinftated in the
archbijhopric of Rheims. In the mean time,
notwith (landing the judgment which was
paffed in favour of the Archbifiop, Pope
Gregory V. held a council at Rome, anno
998, in the prefence of the Emperor Otho
III. at which affifted Gerbert, at that time
archbifiop of Ravenna, and twenty-feven
bifhops of Italy. In this council he de-
clared, that King Robert ought to part
from Bertha, whom he had married con-
trary to the laws, and do penance for J even
years together, according to the degrees
fet down by the canons ; and if he would
not, he fhould be anathematized : that
.Bertha
[ io6 ]
Cent. Bertha mould fubmit to the fame penalty;
x- and he excommunicated Archembold, arcb-
bifliop of 'tours, who had celebrated that
marriage, and the bifhops of France, who
had either afjifted or confuted thereto, 'till
fuch time as they ihould come, and give
the holy fee fatisfaction.
This fentence of the Pope made fuch
an impreffion on the minds of men, that
all the kings dome/lies, except two or three,
abandoned him, and would no longer have
any converfation with . him, and even
caufed the vefTels, out of which he had
eaten or drunk, to be burnt. King Robert
at laft gave ear to the advice of Abbo the
abbot, and parted with Bertha, two or
three years afterwards. Leo IX. (as Ives
of Char ires relates it) fays, that they came
to Rome with the bifiops, to obtain their
abjblution, and get their penance miti-
gated.
The author of the life of Abbo does
not fay that King Robert went to Rome-,
but, that he confefTed his fault both pub-
licly and privately : that he afked pardon,
and did penance for it. That which is moft
evident is, that the marriage was of no
longer force.
Council of Coblentz, anno 922.
Can. 1. Forbids marriage between re-
lations, to ihejixth generation.
Council
[ io7 ]
Council of Augsburg, anno 952. Cent«
Can. 1. Pr lefts, deacons, and Jubdea- X.
cons that marry, ihall be depofed, accord-
ing to chap. 25. of the council of Car-
thage,
Can. 2. Againft thofe clergymen who
keep fufpicious women in their houfes.
Can. 7 and 8. Forbid them to hinder
clergymen and ca?toneJfes from embracing the
monajiic life.
Can. 1 1. Not only bijhops, priejls, dea-
cons, and fub-deacons mail lead a Jingle
life, but alfo, the other clergy fhail be
obliged to live continently when they come
to years of maturity.
General Council of ENGLAND,
Held by St. Dunstan, Archbifhop of
Canterbury,
Ordained, that all priejls, deacons, and
fubdeacons mail embrace a regular and mo-
najiic courfe of life, or retire. Accord-
ingly, St. Dunjlan, and Ojwald and Ethel-
wold, bifhops of IVorceJier and Winchester,
turned the old clergymen out of moil part
of the churches, and put monks in their
place, or elfe forced them to aflame the
monaftical habit.
A certain very potent earl having mar-
ried one of his kinjwomen, St. Dunjlan
excommunicated him, a*nd refufed to take
off
[ io8 ]
off" his excommunication , although the king
(Edgar) had commanded him, and the
earl had obtained a brief of the Pope for
his restoration. At laft the earl, in fear of
thofe punijhments which the divine vengeance
inflicts on excommunicated perfons, left his
kinfwoman, did public penance, and threw
himfelf down proftrate before St. Dwijlan,
in a council, barefoot, cloathed with a
woollen garment, holding a bundle of rods
in his hand, and lamenting his Jin ; from
which St. Dunjlan gave him ablblution,
at the requeft of the bijhops of the coun-
cil. The arrogance of this proud priejl,
fhews us to what a height of infolence
and tyranny churchmen were now arrived.
w St. Dunjlan was made archbijhop of
t( Canterbury, anno 961. His fkill in the
" liberal arts and fciences (qualifications
" much above the genius of the age he
" lived in) gained him firft the name of a
" conjurer, and then of a faint. He is re-
" vered as fuch by the Romanijls, who keep
" an holy-day in honour of him, yearly on
" the 19th of May" — (vide alio the ,Pro-
teflant Kalendar.)—^ The monkifo writers
" tell us, that he was once tempted to
" lewdnefs by the Devil, under the mape of
94 a fine lady, but inftead of yielding to
" her temptations, he took the Devil by the
" noje with a pair of red-hot tongs. " See
Grey's Hyo. part 2. cant. 3. 1. 618. n.
Alfric,
[ I09 ]
Alfric, Archbifhop of Canterbury, CEwt.
x
Succeffor of St. Dunjlan — wrote a letter L_
concerning the monaftic life — and another
againft the marriage of clergymen.
Few councils were held in this century.
In moft part of them the decrees were
concerning tythes — againft churchmen who
keep concubines — and againft marriage
among near relations. The degrees of con-
fanguinity were extended to thzfeventh, in
which it was forbidden to contract mar-
riage ; and fpiritual affinity took place, as
well in the eajlern as the wejlern churches.
Such as married with tbefe impediments were
* divorced without redrefs ; neither were any
difpenfations granted, as it appears from the
cafe of King Robert, and that of the Empe-
ror Nicepborus Phocas.
Fourth marriages were abfolutely pro-
hibited in the eajlern, but not in the
wejlern parts.
In the reign of Edmund king of Eajl-
Anglia, about anno 944, a time when monks
and priejis had gotten full pofTeffion of the
underftandings and confciences of man-
kind, a mixed fynod or ajfembly was held,
wherein ceremonies of marriage, and preli-
minary fecuritiesy which the parties were
to give one another, were fettled. See
Rapin, vol. i. 214.
* See Mark vii. 9.
Ratherius,
[ «* ]
Cent. Ratherius, Bifhop of Verona,
' A man of great repute in Italy. A moft
violent ftickler for the canons. He wrote
feveral treatifes : in one of which, he de-
claims againft the irregular lives of the
clergy of his time, and falls upon their im-
modefly, wrhich was then at fuch an height,
that " one could fcarce" (fays he) " find
" a man fit to be ordained a bifhop, or any
" bi/hop fit to ordain others" He reckons
up feveral horrible ftories, and charges
them chiefly with an infamous commerce
with women.
Another treatife is an injunction againft
the marriage of a clergyman's fon of Ve-
rona, which was performed on a Sunday in
Lent. He declares it irregular, and that
no marriage ought to be celebrated during
Lent, nor on J ?aft- days, nor on Sundays, nor
on holy days: and orders all thofe who com-
mit fuch a fault, to faft forty days; that is
to fay, when others eat at nine o'clock, they
mould ftay 'till noon ere they eat — when
others eat at noon, they mould faft 'till three
o'clock. He excommunicates fuch offenders,
as would not fubmit to this penance, and
declares that God would confign them over
to eternal danmation.
Fulcus, Archbifhop of Rue ims, anno 882*
This archbifiop wrote to feveral kings and
princes, among others, to Alfrede King of
3 -\ Brit an >
[ III j
Britain, whom he congratulates on the Cent.
choice he had made of a worthy perfon to __ x-
fill the fee of Canterbury ; becaufe he heard,
that, in his country, he advanced fuch fort
of men, as permitted the bifldops and priejis
to have women among them, and the laics
to marry their kindred, as well as thofe vir-
gins who were dedicated to God's fervice,
and to have a wife and a concubine at the
fame time.
CENTURY XI. Cent.
XL
St. Fulbert, Bifhop of Chartres,
Determines, that a woman who was en-*
gaged on oath to marry a man, could not
marry another, 'till after his death, or by
his confent. A woman, not being willing
to live with her hufband, and faying, fhe
had rather live a nun, the hufband defires
he may have leave to marry another. St.
Fulbert declares, that, 'tis his opinion, he
could not have leave, 'till fhe were either
dead, or turned reclufe.
About the middle of this century the fa-
mous difpute concerning the prefence of
Christ's body and blood in the eucharijl was
revived.
Berenger, principal of the public fchool.
at Tours, and afterwards archbijhop of An-
gers, a man of a molt acute and fubtle ge-
nius,
[ tli 1
CiiNf . nius, and highly renowned both on account
^* . of his extenfive learning, and the exem*
plary fanctity of his life and manners, (fee
Mofheim, edit. Machine, vol. i. p. 534.) had
the ajfurance to deny the bodily prefence;
and to maintain, " that the bread and wine
" were not changed into the body and
*' blood of Christ, but preferved their
" natural and effential qualities, and were
" no more than figures and external fym^
" bols of the body and blood of the di-
" vine Saviour."
This wife, fcriptural, and rational doftrine
was no fooner publifhed, than it was oppofed
by certain doctors of France and Germany!
but Pope Leo IX. attacked it with peculiar
vehemence and fury, in the year 1050 ; and
in two councils, one at Rome, the other at
Vercelli, had the doctrine of Berenger fo-
lemnly condemned, and the book of Sco-
tus, from which it was drawn, committed
to the fames. This example was followed
by the council of Paris, which was fum-
moned the fame year by Henry I. in
which Berenger, and his numerous adhe-
rents, were menaced with all forts of
evils both fpiritual and temporal. >
Thefe threats were executed in part
againft this unhappy prelate, whom Hen-*
ry deprived of all his revenues. Mojheim,
ibid.
Lanfranc, archbifhop of Canterbury, was~
one of Berenger s moft formidable enemies.
[ i-is ]
He, and numbers of other cdnfiderable Cent.
churchmen, wrote againft Berengers heretical
doctrine. But one of the moft curious,
was Guitmond, archbifloop of Averse,
who wrote books againft that heretic, as
Berenger was called; in one of which,
Guitmond anfwers an objection made by Be-
renger, viz. " That the flefh of Jesus
**■ Christ is incorruptible, but the facra-
c< ments of the altar are corruptible if kept
*? too long."
Guitmond' s reply to this, contains fuch a
proof of the fize of men's underftandings,
where they are retrenched by prejudice and
fuperjlition, to the ftandard of vulgar notion
and popular opinion, that I cannot forbear
laying it before the reader, as the tranflator
of Du Pin now lays it before me. Cent. xi.
p. 18.
" Guitmond replies— that, though the
<( confecr at ed bread feems to be corrupted, to
<f the apprehenfion of corrupted men; yet,
" in reality; it is not changed at all; and
" that it does not appear altered, unlefs as
" a punifhment of the infidelity and ne-
" gligence of men — that it cannot be
** gnawn by mice, and other vermin*, and,
" if at any time it appears to be fo* 'tis
" only to punifh the negligence, or try
(C the faith of men.
" Nor will he admit, that the fire can
" confume thefe myjleries; and he fays, that
" with veneration they commit it to this
Vol. III. I " mofl
Cent.
XI.
up
[ "4 ]
moir pure element, to be carried
into heaven.
" Laftly, he affirms, that, though the
eucharijl may ferve for murijkment , yet
it does not turn to excrement: and as to
that objection which might be made —
that, fuppojing a man jhould eat nothing
for fome conjiderable time, bu t confecrated
bread, he would nevertheless have occa-
fwn to go to Jiool — he anfwers, that, 'tis
matter of fact which has never been yet
experienced, and that it could never en-
ter the heart of any Catholic to try fuch
an experiment. — That if any of Beren-
gers party thought fit to do it, one
fhould not trouble one's head much,
about what became of the majs of thofe
infidels, which committed lb great a
crime -, becaufe, fays he, we do not be-
lieve that the bread and wine are neceffa-
rily changed into the body and blood of
Jesus Christ, unlefs among thofe who
have faith to believe this myftery, and
that the words of Jesus Christ are
efficacious.
" Laftly, if any of them fhould order
a Catholic priejl to confecrate one or
more great loaves, to try the experi-
ment, it is to be believed, that this loaf
would not be turned into excrement; or
rather, that God would permit thefe
hereticks to be deceived, by ordering fome
angel or fpirit to convey away this confe-
5 " crated
f "5 ]
««.
crated loaf \ and to put an unconfecrated Cent.
u one in its Jlead." XL
This Berenger, or Beringarius, as Fdw
calls him, was the firft that was deemed
an heretic, for denying Tranfubjlantiation.
See Fox Mart. vol. ii. p. 383.
Lanfranc, Archbijhop of Canterbury.
In a letter to the archbijhop of Tork, he
Very clearly determines, that it is not lawful
for a man or a woman, divorced for adul-
tery i to marry again.
Letter 21. To bijhop Herfajl, about a
man whom he had ordained deacon, with-
out having any order for it, who, befides*
was a married man, and would not turn off
his wife. He enjoins the bijhop to depofe
the man from his deaconjhip, to give him*
for the future, only the four lejjer orders,
and not to place him among the deacons
unlefs he would live Jingle. If he did that,
then he mould not confer the order of dea-
con upon him again, but only grant him a
power of difcharging his functions, by
giving him the go/pels in a fynod or afTem-
bly of the clergy.
Council of Pavia, under Pope
Benedict VII.
Deer. t. and 2. Prohibit the clergy from
having any concubines, and from living with
'women .
I 2 Council
[ n6 ]
Cent. Council of Rome, iocr.
XL /
' Gregory bifhop of Verceil was depofed
for adultery, and feveral laws made againfl
incontinent clerks.
D°, anno 1059.
Can. 11. No perfon fliall marry a rela-
tion, to the feve?zth generation, fo long as
the kindred may be known.
D% anno 1063.
Alexander II. held this council, confin-
ing of above 100 bijhops. They revived
the decrees of Leo IX. and Nicholas II.
again ft thofe who married their kindredy till
after the /event h degree.
In two other councils held at Rome, Alex-
ander condemned thofe who maintained,
that the degrees of confanguinity ought to
reach no farther than to coujin-germans,
which he calls the herefy of the Nico-
taitans.
HlLDEBRAND, 01* * GREGORY VII.
This Pope's decree againft: thofe clerks
who either kept concubines or were married,
removed, in Germany, Italy, and France, a
* For the hiflory of this mlfcreant, fee Fox,
vol. i. 196.
great.
[ "7 1
great many ecclefiaftics out of their places, Cent,
who were found guilty of having unlawful . ^*»_
commerce with women.
Thefe men not only complained of this
yoke, which the Pope would impofe upon
them, but they like wife inveighed againfl
him, and accufed him of advancing an in-
fupportable error, and fuch as is contrary
to the words of Our Saviour, who fays,
that all men are not able to live continent ly\
and contrary to the words of the apojlle,
who enjoins thofe who cannot live conti-
nentiy, to marry.
They added, that this law., which he
would impofe on them, which obliged them
to live like angels, by offering force to the
ordinary * courfe of nature, would be the
caufe of great diforders : that, moreover,
if the Pope perfifted in his refolution, they
had rather renounce the priejihood than mar-
* Qu? How much iefs is it contrary to <s the or-
" dinary courfe of nature" to compel men to live in
a ftate of celibacy (for that is the facl) who cannot af-
ford a divorce from adulterous wives, or who are under
neccfTary, perpetual, and irrevocable feparation, and,
perhaps, bound by large penalties to abftain from all
intercourfe whatfoever with the women to whom they
have been married ? Pope Gregory had juft as much
right to impofe celibacy on the clergy, as the Protejlant
powers have to infli£t it on fuch as are above-meu-
tioned. Such a thing was never heard of in> the
Jewijh law, nor ever would have been thought of,
unlefs men had aboliflied the whole oeconomy of that
moft righteous fyjlem relative to marriage^ and taken
upon themfelves that which belongs to God only.
1 3 rkgt>
[ ii8 ]
Cent, riage, and let him fee if he could get an-
_ gels to take cire of their flocks, fince he
would not make ufe of men. This was the
language of thofe ^rr^Vv/ecclefiaftics (fays
F>u Pin) according to the account of an
hiftorian of that time.
But the Pope preffed the execution of
his decree, and wrote very warm letters to
the bifliops, to oblige them to take Ariel:
care of it.
The archhifljop of Mayence doing his ut-
moft therein, found how difficult it was
to root out an abufe, fo inveterate, and fo
general, as this was; and before he pro-
ceeded again ft the refractory, he gave them
Jix months time to reclaim. Laftly, having
called a fynod 2X Erford, he told them, that
they were either to renounce their pretended
marriages, or elfe their attendance on the
altar.
When they found they could not, by
their prayers, prevail upon him to alter his
refolution, they withdrew from the coun-
cil in great wrath, threatening either to turn
the archbifljop out or to kill him. He, to
pacify them, ordered them to be called back
again, and promifed he would fend to Rome,
and endeavour to work the Pope over to
another mind.
The decree of Gregory met with no lefs
oppofition in France, Flanders, England,
and Lombardy, than it did in Germany, and
this oppofition rofe fo high at Cambray,
that
[ "9 ]
that they can fed a man to be burnt, who Cent.
had aiTerted that married priefts ought not XI.
to celebrate the mafs, or any divine office,
and that no man ought to affift them
therein.
All this did not dif courage Gregory VII.
in the leaji : on the contrary, he wrote fe-
veral letters to the princes and bijhops of
thele countries, whereby he enjoins them
not to tolerate clerks that were married,
or kept concubines. He then ordered an
apology of his decree to be iffued out, in
the nature of a manifejlo, wherein he very
much exalts the authority of the holy fee,
and the decretals of his predecejjors.
He afterwards decreed, that the bijhops,
who (hall permit priejls, deacons, or jub-
deacons of their diocefe to live married, fhall
htfufpended of their functions.
During this Popedom, Hugh bifhop of
Dia, held a council at Poiffiers, wherein it
was decreed —
Can. 8. That the children of priejls, and
bajlards, fhall not be admitted into holy or-
ders, unlefs they be monks, or live in a re-
gular convent. But that they mail not hold
any ecclefiaftical preferments.
Can. 9. Sub-deacons, deacons, and priejls,
fhall have no concubines, or any other fuf-
picious women in their houfes; and all they
who hear a mafs of a priejl that keeps
a concubine, fhall be excommunicated.
William Duke of Acquitain, and Count of
I 4 Poitiers,
[ 120 ]
Cent. Poitiers, havine married one of his relations,
YT
the /<?<g-^6' of the holy fee, and the arch-
bi(hop of Bourdeaux, called a fynod, to
oblige him to part from her. However,
the duke, of his own accord, parted from his.
wife. With this fubmiffion Gregory was
highly pleafed.
Gregory determined that a woman, who
had married one of her kinfmen, and was
become a widow, ought not to receive any
dowry, from any part of her hufband's re-
venue, nor to have any advantage of that
marriage, which was in its own jiature null.
Letter 48. He orders a man who had
killed bis brother, to be prevented marrying
till he had done penance.
Letter 50. He determines, that one who
is not born in lawful wedlock' fi. e. fuch as
the canons deemed lawful) cannot be ad-
vanced to the epifcopacy — becaufe it is con-
trary to the canons.
Council of Melphi, under Urban II.
anno 1089.
Urban II. renewed the decrees againft
the fimoniacal, and concerning the celibacy
of thofe who were in holy orders. He
therein enjoins, that none ihall be admitted
into holy orders but fuch as had led chafe
lives, and had never been married to more
than one woman. He declares the fons of
priejls incapable of holy orders, unlefs they
have
[ i*t ]
have taken upon them the monaftical ha- C^nt.
bit. -l£
Council of Benevento, anno 1091, un-
der Urb^n II.
Can. 4. Laics are forbidden to eat fefb
after Afli-Wednefday — and all the faithful.
of both fexes are enjoined to put afoes on
their heads on that day.
It is likewife ordered, that 710 marriage
fhall be folemnized, from S*ptuage/ima Sun-
day, tiil after the oclave of IVhitfuntide ;
and from the firfl Sunday in Advent, till
after the ottave of Epiphany.
Council of Clermont.
Can. 9, 10. Againfl: thofe clerks who
keep concubines.
Can. 11. Prohibits promoting to holy
orders the fons of concubines, or the bellow-
ing any benefices upon them, unlefs they
have embraced the monaftical or canonical
life.
Can. 25. The children of priejis, dea~
cons, and fub* deacons, mail not be promoted
to holy orders, if they be not either monks
or regular canons.
Can. 29, 30. Thofe who fly to a crofs>
fhall be as fecure as thofe who fly to a
church. They fhall not be delivered up to
jujiice, 'till they are afTured that no violence
fhall be offered to their lives or members.
Council
[ 122 ]
Cent, Council of Nismes, anno 1096.
XI.
— rJ_ Can. 10. Thofe who marry their rela-
pons mail be excommimicated.
In this century, there were violent con-
troveriies between the Latin and Greek
churches ; and among other curious particu-
lars of accufation againft the Greeks, Car-
dinal Humbert charges them with permit-
ting married men to wait at the altars, even
at the time when they had to do with their
wives : and charges Nicetus with being a
Nicolaitan, becaufe he oppofed the celibacy
of the priejls and deacons. He explains the
canons, which prohibit priejls from parting
with their wives, of the care they ought to
take of them, in looking upon them Jlill
as their wives, though they have no carnal
knowledge of them.
He produces the canon of the council of
Nice, concerning women who live with
clerks, and feveral authorities of the Popes,
to prove that priejls ought to live chajily
ft. e. in celibacy.)
He charges the Greeks for not ordaining
priejls, till they had obliged them to marry,
and concludes all with anathematizing Ni-
cetus, who had written on thefe points
againft the Latin church.
Whoever has a mind to read as much
nonfenje and abfurdity as would reach from
"Rome to Conjlantinople, and back again, may
meet with it in thefe famous controverfies
between
XL
[ '23 1
between the Latins and Greeks. One Cent.
charge againft the Latins was, that, " monks
M might be permitted to eat flefh and ^/r
f€ r0«." — Another — M that they were guilty
" of eating fZ^g/£ and ^g^ in the A?/y
>' week."
Peter Damien, Cardinal Bifhop of
Ostia.
In a letter to his nephew Damien, (whom
jie exhorts to be zealous in the exercifes
pf a monajiical life) he reproves him for
having gone from an hermitage to a monaf-
tery, and exhorts him to return thither
again. In another, he reproves a monk, who
delayed turning hermit, becaufe he could
hardly perfuade himfelf not to drink wine.
This Cardinal wrote a treatife called
the Gomorrhean, dedicated tp Pope Leo IX.
who approved of it, in a letter which is
prefixed at the beginning. In this tract he
proves that clergymen who have committed
fins of uncleannefs, which modefty does
not permit to be named, ought to be de-
prived for ever. He rejects the canons of
the penitential books, which impofe too light
penances for thofe forts of crimes, of which
he mews the enormity : he inveighs againft
thofe perfons who are guilty of fuch noto-
rious offences, and exhorts them to a fpeedy
repentance, and to do fevere penance.
N. B. How is it, that this cardinal did
not fee, that the unnatural wrickednefs,
which
[ »*4 ]
Cent, which he complains of, among the clergy,
_L1_ was the natural confequence of their celi-
bacy, and being flliit up together in mctiaf-
t cries, where no women muir. ever enter ?
But fo blinded was this cardinal to the
real fource of the evil, that, when he be-
gan to think the time of his diffolution
drew near, he excufed himfelf from goin^
to Mount CaJJin on a vifit, " left he ihould
" die out of the precincts of a monaftery"
In a tract dedicated to John bi(hop of
Cefena, and to the archdeacon of Ravenna,
he confutes the opinion of the lawyers, who
re {trained the degrees of confanguinity, in
which one might contract marriage, to the
fourth degree, and imagined that grand-
nephews and grand-nieces may intermarry.
He maintains, that as far as any confan-
guinity or affinity can be difcemed, matri-
mony ought not to be contracted ; which
takes place to the feventh degree*
He alfo treats at large of alms-giving,
and fhews the ufefulnefs of it, both for
the living and the dead,
Treatife 17th, to Pope Nicholas II. he
exhorts him to put a flop to enormities
committed by unchajle clergymen, and to
make ufe of the feverity of the canons
againft them, in imitation of Phineas's
zeal.
His eighteenth treatife conlifts of three
letters, which Jhew, very evidently, whom
he ranked among unchajle clergymen ; for
he
[ »*5 ]
he (hews that the clergy are obliged to Cent.
lead a Jingle life, and inveighs mofl bitterly XI> .
againlt thofe who married or kept concu-
bines.
In another letter, he recommends chajlity
to his nephew Damien9 and perfuades him
to receive the communion every day, to be
in a condition to preferve that virtue. Af-
terwards he gives him wholefome inftruc-
tions to withftand the temptations of the
Devi/.
St. Anselm, Archbifhop of Canter-
bury, 1089.
In a treatife of marriages between near
relations, he enquires into the reafons of
that prohibition, which he extends only to
the fixth degree of confanguinity .
"This faint was a great oppofer of priefs'
marriage. Under his aufpices a council
was held, in which was decreed, " an or-
" der for priefts to be fequeftered from
" their wives, which before were not for-
" bidden (in England) according as the
<c words of mine author do purport (fays
" Fox) whofe words be thefe. Ansel-
' ' mus prohibuit uxores facer dotibus Anglo-
" rum ante non prohibit as. Quod quibuf-
" dam mundifjimum vifum eji, quibufdam pe-
" riculofumy ne dum munditias viribus ma-
" jores appeterenty in immunditias horribiles
" ad Chriitiani nominis fummum dedecus in-
" cider ent. Henr. Hunt"—" Anselm pro-
" hibited
[ M* ]
u hibited wives to the priefts of the Eng~
" lifh, which were not prohibited before.
" Which thing appeared to fome moft
" filthy ■, to others dangerous, left, while
<c they earneftly endeavoured after greater
" purity, they mould fall into impurities, fo
" horrible, as to bring a difgrace on the
" Chrijlian name. Anselm did not at-
K tend to this, but made a canon for the
M excommunication of /odontites, which was
" never publiihed." See Tbefypb. vol. i.
p. 177, n. firft edit. — 171, fecond edit.
" After this council, Herbert, bifhop of
f€ Norwich, had much ado with the priefis
u of his diocefe, for they would neither
" leave their wives, nor quit their benefices ;
u whereupon he wrote to Anfelm for ad-
*' vice. Anfelm required him (as he did
i€ others at the fame time, by writing) to
" perfuade the people of Norfolk and Suf-
*( folk, that, as they profeffed Chrifiianity,
n they mould fubdue them as rebels againit
" the church, and utterly drive both them
" and their wives out of the country,
" placing monks in their rooms.
" The like bufinefs had alfo Gerard,
fi archbimop of Tork, in depriving the
*c priefis of his province of their wives :
xc which thing, with all his thunderings
H and excommunications, he could hardly
" bring about.
" Upon this ruffling of Anfelm with
*' married priefts, were rhyming verfes
" made,
[ I27 1
made, to help the matter withal, when Cent*
reaibn could not ferve ; which verfes, .
for the folly thereof, I thought here to
annex.
0 male viventes, verfus audite fequentes ;
Uxores vejtras, quas odit fumma potejlas,
Linquite propter eum, tenuit qui morte trophaum,
Quod fi non facitis inferna claujira petetis.
Christi fponfa jubet, ne Prefiyter ille miniflret^
£hu tenet uxorem, Domini qui perdet amore?n :
Contradicentem fore dicimus injipientem :
Non ex rancor e loquor hac, potius fed amore."
See Fox. Mart. vol. i. p. 216.
I ftand not to comment on the falfe
profody in thefe verfes — their quality, not
their quantities, are moft to the purpofe ;
the Englifi reader may be acquainted with
the former by the following tranflation —
" O ye evil-livers, hear the following verfes ;
" Tour wives, which ^Supreme Power hateth,
<c Leave for his fake, who triumphed in death ;
" Which if ye do not, you Will go to hell.
" The fpoufe of Christ commands, that the Prefbyter
Jhould not minifter,
" Who keeps a wife, who will lofe the love of the Lord,
u He that contradicts this, we fay, is foolijh :
M Ifpeak not this out of rancour, but rather from love.1*
We may obferve, that now the feeds of
oppofition, and contempt of the word, and
ways, and will of God, concerning marriage,
in this kingdom, were growing up, from
the planting oiAuJlin the ?nonk, anno 597, to
the watering of his fucceflbr St. Anfehn, who
died a?ino 1109, towards that maturity, to
which
t '23 ]
C£nt. which they will be found to have arrived;
before we have finished our enquiries uporf
the fubiec~t.
Some years after the above verfes had
been fent forth, they met with an anfwer,
from the pen of Walter Mapes> archdeacon
of Oxfordy in the reign of Henry II. This
fame Walter feems to have been a very
merry fellow, and to have indulged a vein
of pleafantry in all his compofitions ; fome
of which I have feen, and among others
the following drole on the prohibition of
clerical marriage, which I will here infert
for the entertainment of my learned readers -,
and if any of them will favour me with a
fuitable tranflation of them, it mall make
its appearance in the next edition of this
volume , that my unlearned readers, as well
as they, may find a little entertainment in
the midft of this dry and barren defart of
Popiflo quotation.
Part of the account which I find of this
man, in an old book, intitled, " Remaines
" concerning Brittaine" — printed anno 1629,
runs thus—
" Walter de Mapes9 arch- deacon of Ox-
t€ fordy who, in the time of K. Henrie II.
" filled England 'with his merriments, when
" the Pope forbad the clergie their wives,
<( became proctor for himfelf and them,
" with thefe verfes , defiring only for his
" fee, that every priejl, with his fweet- hearty
" would fay a pater- nojler for him."
Prifriani
[ u9 3
Prifciaui rcgula penttus cojfatur, Cent,
Sacerdos per hie & hacc o/itti declinatur \ XL
Sed per hie folummodo nunc articulator*
Cum per nojlrum brajulem hrec amovcatur*
Ita quidem prejbyter c^pit allegare,
Peccat crtminaliier qui vult f (per arc
Quod Deus irijunxerat, fcemmam amare :
"Tales dlgnum duximus fures appellare,
O qucim dolor anxius, qudm tormentum grave^
Nobis ejf dimitlcre quoniam fuave !
O Romans Pontifex, Jlatuijli prave,
Nc in tanto criminc moriaris, cave.
Nou ei * Innocentius, into nocens ver}y
Qui quod faSlo docility Jluelet abolere,
Et quod olhn juvenis voluit habere,
Modo vetus Pontifex Jludet prohibere.
Gignere nos prcecepit vetus ieflamentum,
Ubi novum prohibet nufqudm tfl inventum :
Praful qui contrarium dohat documentum*
Nullum neceffarium his dat argwnentum*
Dealt enim Dominus ?nakdUlionem
Viro qui non fecerit gehefationern ;
Ergo ibi confulo, per banc rationem,
Gignere ui hab as benediciioncm.
Nonne dc militibus militcs procedunt f
. Et reges a re gibus, qui fibi fuccedunt ?
Per locum a fimili omnes jura ladunt,
Clericos qui gignere crimen effe crcdunt.
Zacharias habuit pro I em & uxor em,
Per virum quern genuit adept us honor em %
Baptizavit enim nojlrum Salvatorem :-— •
Pcrcat qui teneat novum hunc errcrem.
Paulus ctelos rapitur ad fuperions,
Uli inultas didicit res fecrciiores :
Jd nos tandem red ens, injlruenfque mores t
Suets (inquit) haheai qu'ilitet uxores.
Propter hac, iff alia dogmata doclorum,
Reor effe melius, cjf rnagis deccrunt,
Qui f que SUAM habeat & non prcxi?n:rumy
Ne in cur rat odium , & tram eoriim*
* Nomen Papae.
Vol. III. K Proximorum
[ 13° 3
Cent. Proximorum faeminas, fill as, iff neptes,
XI. Violarc nefas ejl, quare nihil difceptes :
Vere tuam habeas, & in HAC dele £1 a ,
Diem ut fie ultimum tutius expecles,
Ecce jam pro clericis multum allegavi,
Necnon pro Prefbyteris plura eomprobavi :—
Pater-noster nunc pro me quoniam peccavi,
Dicat quifique Presbyter cum sua suavi.
Synod of Arras, anno 1025.
News being brought to Gerard, bimop
of Ca?nbray and Arras, that there was a
feci of heretics arrived from Italy, who
taught, that " marriage was condemned by
" the ordinances of the gofpel," the bifhop
fummoned & fynod 2X Arras, wherein this,
♦and fome other errors, were refuted, and
the heretics brought to fubferibe a recan-
tation.
Council of Bourges, anno 1031.
Can. 5. Priejis who cohabit with their
wives, (hall only be readers or chanters for
the future. Deacons and fab-deacons mail
not be fuffered to keep their wives or con-
cubines.
Can. 6. The bifliops mail oblige them
to take an oath to that furpofe, at their or-
dination.
Can. 7. All who are employed m mi-
nifierial functions, fhall have ecclefiaftical
tonfure — i. e. their beards fhaved, and the
crown made on their heads.
Can.
[ tp 1
Can. 8. The fins of deacons or fub-dea- Cent,
cons fhall not be admitted into the c/et gy. ' '
Can. 10. Such fhall be deemed Jons of
clergymen, as were born after their fathers
quitted the ecclejinjlical ftate, and returned
to that of laics.
Can. ii. Bifliops fhall declare, at the
time of ordination, that they excommunicate
thofe who fhall prefume to prefent to them
Jons of clergymen to be ordained, and that
fuch as have got their ordination by fur-
prize fhall be depofed.
Can. 1 6. Thofe who leave their wives,
except upon account of adultery, fhall not
marry others, as long as the former are
living, nor the women other hufbands in
like cafes.
Can. 17. No man fhall take to wife a
relation, to the fixtb and /even tb degree of
confanguinity. >
Can. 1 8. None fhall marry, in like:
manner, his kin/man s wife.
Can. ig. No man fhall give his daugh-
ter in marriage to any priejl, deacon, oxjub-
deacorij or to their fins.
Can. 20. None fhall marry the daugh-
ters of the clergy. After the feffion of this
/ynod, Aimo the archbijhop declared, that
St, Martial mould be ftyied an apojile in all
the church offices.
K 2 Council
[ *32 ]
Cent. Council of Limoges, anno io?i.
y i
The fame queftion was debated, and af-
ter many arguments, the apofiolical dignity
was conferred on 5/. Martial.
For the nonfenfical difputes about this
St. Martial, between the priejls and monks,
fee Mosheim, edit. Macl. vol. i. p. 540 — i.
The canons again ft incontinent clergymen
were revived.
The bifhop of Pay en Valay reported,
that ih^ Count of Clermont being excommu-
nicated, for leaving his lawful wife to marry
another, made a journey to the court of
Rome, where he obtained abfolution of the
Pope, who had no notice of the fentence
palled again ft him. That the bifoop having
made a complaint, the Pope returned for
anfwer, that he ought to blame himfelf
for what had happened, as he did not in-
form him that the Count was exco?nmuni~
cated. The Pope added, that, if he had
known it, he would have confirmed the
bifhop* s fentence, becaufe he makes profeffion
to aifift his brethren in every thing, and not
oppofe them : therefore he abrogated and
made void the penance and abfolution grant-
ed to that excommunicated perfon, who
ought to expect nothing but a curfe, 'till he
has made fatisfaclion, and has been duly ab-
Jolved by his dioeefan.
Councils
C *33 ]
Councils held in France, 1040. Cent.
All
It was ordained in all thefe councils, that
the people fhould abftain from eating fejlj
on Fridays and Saturdays, and from drink-
ing wine on Fridays ; and that, in coniidera-
tion of this ab/linence; offenders mould be
difcharged from other penances, provided
they bound themfelves by oath to ob-
ferve it.
A great number of bodies of faints, and
abundance of relics, were brought into thefe
councils; and it was generally believed,
that many miracles were wrought therein.
Council of Rheims, anno 1049.
The bifhop of Langres was accufed by
one of his clerks, for that he, the faid bi-
fhop, took away the wife of him, the faid
clerk, and after having abufed her, made
her a nun. The bi/Jjop, not appearing, was
excommunicated : as were all thofe prelates,
who, being fummoned to this council, and
did not appear. N. B. Here is a prece-
dent ot excommunication for non-appearance
on citation.
Can. 1 1 . No man mall take to wife any
of his near relations.
Laftly, All thofe perfons were exco?n-
municated) who mould protect, or hold cor-
refpondence with, the new heretics of
France, the fodomites, and certain lords who
K 3 had
XI
[ '*34 5
Gent, had contracted forbidden marriages, and a£?
faulted fome bijhops and other clergymen.
Council of Tours, 1060.
Can. 9. T\ ofe men who marry their
kinfwomen, or thofe women who keep an
unchafte correfpondence with their kinf-
men, and refufe to leave them, or to do pe-
nance, mail be excluded from the commu-
nion of the faithful, and turned out of the,
church.
Normandy.
Council of Rouen, anno 1050.
Can. 1. The articles of faith, comprized
in the creed of the catholic and apojlolic
.church, ought to bejirmly adhered to.
Qu ? What was become of the fcrip-
tures ?
Council of Lisieux, anno 1055 ; and that
of Rouen, anno 1063.
The archbijhop of Rouen, under whom
the preceding council was held, was de-
pofed anno 1055, in another council con-
vened at Lijieux : — that which chiefly-
brought on him this condemnation, was
the difpleafure of duke William, his nephew,
who was incenfed againft him, becaufe he
had excommunicated that prince, upon ac-
count of his marriage, with the prineefs
2 Matilda,
[ 135 1
Matilda, his kinfwoman, the daughter of Cent.
Baldwin count of Flanders. m ^
This prelate published a confejjion of
faith again ft Berenger s erroneous opinions.
See before, 113.
Council of Rouen, anno 1072.
Can. 14. No marriages fhall be folem-
nized privately, nor after meals. The bride-
groom and bride, being fafting, fhall be
blejfed by a prieji, in like manner fafting.
Before he proceed to marry them, enquiry
fhall be made, whether the parties be not
relations, in the feventb degree of confan-
guinity.
Can. 15. Br lefts, deacons, and fub- dea-
cons, who are married, cannot enjoy any
church revenues, nor difpofe of them by
themfelves or by others.
Can. 16. A man cannot marry a widow,
with whom he is fufpeBed to have converfed
fcandaloufly, in her hufband's life-time.
Can. 17. A man, whofe wife is veiled
a nun, cannot take another as long as fhe is
Jiving. -
Germany.
Council of Selingenstadt, anno 1023.
Can. 1. Abftinence from eating flefh
/hall be obferved fourteen days before the
fejtival of St. Jobn, and before Chrijlmas ;
on the vigils of the Epiphany, of the fe/li-
K 4 vals
L *$P J
Cent, vals of the apejiks, of the aliumption of the
x*- Virgin Mary, of £/. Lawrence, and of all
thcJhiaU*
Can. 2, Fixes the Ember weeks.
Can. 3. Denotes the time when the fo-
lemnization of matrimony is forbidden, viz.
from Advent 'till after the Epiphany (five
weeks) and from Septuagejima 'till after
Eqfier (nine weeks) making together above
a quarter of a year ; as alio on the above-
fpecified days of abftinence. N.B. Let the
reader add all thefe together, and he will
be at a lofs to conceive when marriage
could be folemnized.
Can. 11. The firft degree of confan-
gulniiy mall be reckoned from the coujins*
german*
The Council of Mentz, anno 1069.
Sigefrcy, or 5w/h*V, arch bi (hop of Mentz,
held this council, in which the emperor
Henry IV. made a propofal to divorce his
wife, becaufe he could have r,o ifiue of her
body. Sigefrid inclined to this opinion ;
but Peter Damien, the Popes legate, being
arrived, prevented the divorce. The arch-
Hjhop wrote to Alexander TI. that " he had
" prohibited the emperor from divorcing
'* his wife under pain of excommunication ;
(t but that this prince having alledged, that
" he could not have carnal copulation with
<f her, and the emprefs having owned her
<c impotency, he found himfelf obliged to
" con i ul t
[ !37 3
t (
a
confult the Holy See about fo extraor- Cent.
dinary a cafe -, that he was unwilling to XJ;
pafs judgment on the affair in a council,
which was called upon that occafion,
'till he received his anfwer, and en-
treated him to fend his legates, to examine
" and decide the matter in Germany!*
How this matter ended is not laid, but,
it is to be fuppofed, in favour of the di-
vorce ; and that the emperor married again :
as we find him, with his e?nprefs and his
Jon, afterwards waiting, bare-iegged and
bare-footed, at the gates of Cannjium, three
days and three nights, in the depth of win-
ter, before he could be admitted to have
an audience of Pope Hildebrand, who had
excommunicated him. Sec Fox, vol. i. 202.
England.
The Council of Aenham, anno 1010.
King Ethelred called a council, in which
EJphegus, archbifhop of Canterbury, and
Ethelred, archbifhop of York, afiifted, and
made feveral conititutions and rules, tli.it
ought to be followed by the clerks and
monks — concerning the celibacy of pricfts9
and other clergymen — againft fuperftitiasti
practices and inconti?iency — about the rights
of churches, particularly St. Peter s pence
— the great jejiival of the Virgin Mary-+~
the Ember weeks — concerning the time in
which marriages are forbidden to be fo-
lemnized
[ ^ 3
Cent, lemnized — about the interval to be ob-
__XI* ferved by widows before they marry again,
which is a year.
Council held at London, anno 1075.
Superjlitions were forbidden , and the celi-
bacy of the clergy w&s Jlr 'icily enjoined.
D° anno 1102 *.
Can. 4. Revive- the constitutions about
celibacy.
Can. 12. Declares promifes of mar-
riage, made without witnefles, to be null, if
denied by one of the parties.
Can. 14. Prohibits marriages to the^-
venth degree of confanguinity.
Can. 16. Sodomy is forbidden under very
fevere penalties, and this cafe is reserved to
the cognizance of the bifhops. Thefe con-
ftitutions were confirmed by the fee of
Rome.
In the year 1 108, St. Anfelm held ano-
ther council at London, in which he made
ten very rigid canons againft fii-icjls and dea-
cons, who married, or lived incontinently.
* N.B. This Council rather belongs toCe?it. XII,
but I fet it down as I find it in Du, Pin.
Spain.
[ *39 ]
Spain. Cent.
XL
Council of Coyaco, anno 1050.
Can. 3. Priejis and deacons fhall not
keep any women in iheir houfes, unlefs their
mother, ffler, aunt, or ?not her -in-law.
Can. 4. Perfons guilty of murder, adul-
tery, or any fort of uncle annefs, fhall be
obliged to do penance-, and if they refufe
to do it, they fhall be feparated from the
church and the communion.
Can. 12. Thofe who have taken fanc-
tuary in a church, nay even within thirty
paces of it, fhall not be taken from thence
by violence.
Du Pin, in his obfervations on this
eleventh century, fays, that marriage, and
concubinage of clergymen, had their career,
at laft, quite flopped, by the means of a
vaft number of decrees ; that the fentences
of excommunication were fo frequent as to
become contemptible. They extended even
to the third generation of thofe who con-
verfed or correfponded with the excommu-
nicate.
The ufe of the difciplining whip, un-
known to all antiquity, began in the end
of this century — the cuflom of doing pe-
nance for another, was likewife introduced
at that time.
CENTURY
[ Ho ]
Cent. CENTURY XII.
XII.
Ivo, Bifhop of Chartres,
Was a great writer ; Du Pin mentions
287 letters of his, yet extant.
Letter 99. Is the refolution of a ques-
tion propofed by Gualon, abbot of St*
Quint in in Beauvais, viz. " If children
" under y£v years of age can be contracted
" or married with one another; and in
" cafe there be only a contract between
" them, and one of the parties die, whe-
" ther the furviving party may marry the
" brother or fijler of the other ?*
M Anfwer. None can actually marry
" 'till the age of fourteen, but that chil-
" dren may promife marriage to each other,
" as foon as they are at years of difcretion,
" which he determines to be 2Xfeven years
" of age; and that a contract agreed on at
" that age, fhall hinder either party, if
" one of them die before they are com-
l£ pleat ly married, from marrying with the
" brother or Jzjler of the deceafed."
Letter 122. To Volgrin, archdeacon
of Paris, aflerts, that a Jewijh woman,
marrying a Chrijiian hufband, and after-
wards returning to Judaifm, is not freed
from her conjugal vow, nor, though fnQ
leave him, can the man marry with ano-
ther during her life*
In
[ Hi ]
In Letter 123. To Gaultier/ library- Cent
keeper of the church of Beauvais, he gives x**;
his opinion on a difficult cafe, which he
had confulted him upon — viz. — " how he
•* mould proceed againft a priejl, who had,
€€ in a profane manner, made ufe of other
" ceremonies and words than are prefer i bed
<c in the form of marriage?' Ivo te'ls
him, that " he had never yet heard of Jo
" foul a facrilegCy nor was there any provi-
" fion againft it in the canons; and there -
" fore, this being a crime wholly new and
" unparalleled, fome more than ordinary
" punifhment ought to be inflicted on the
" author of it : however, not to deal too
" feverely, without warrant and authority
€* from fcripture, or the ecclefiafiical laws,
*f he thinks it fufficient, that fuch punifh-
" ment be laid on him, as the canons or-
** der to be inflicted upon thofe that vio-
" late the facraments and holy things."
On the above we may obferve, that mar-
riage was getting more into the hands of
the priejis — that the church had increafed
its ceremonies fince the time when the priefl
only attended to give a benediction — that
they were very * jealous of any difrefpect to
thefe ceremonies — but that marriage was not
yet a facr anient .
Letter 155. To Odo, archdeacon of
* As well they might be, for they bung by the
fiender thread of human invention.
I o Orleans,
<c
ti
tc
<t
[ 142 ]
Cent. Orleans, Ivo treats of this queftion, " If
€* a woman who has committed fornica-
" tion, and is great with child, may
" marry? and concludes, that, in ftrid:-
** nefs, no great-bellied woman ought to
" have carnal knowledge with any man —
but, confidering the infirmity of the
flefh, St. Paul advifes men to ufe their
own wives, for avoiding fornication , al-
though they are with child, and there-
fore, by confequence, a man may marry
" a woman in that condition."
N. B. Here we may fuppofe what they
meant by fornication, namely, the man
and woman comi?ig together without a prieji:
this, as we fhall find, was not brought to
its perfection 'till the next century.
Letter 158. He acquaints Hugh, arch-
bifhop of Lyons, that King Philip and his
fon are refolved to make the marriage void,
of Con/lance, the king's daughter, and Hugh
earl of Troyes, becaufe of their being too
nearly related; and defires the arcbbifiop to
fend fpeedily to all the bifiops, fummoned
to court on this occafion, the genealogy of
both families.
Letter 161. He aflerts, that a man,
who promifes marriage to a woman, and
afterwards ?narries another, ought to be
divorced, and to return to his firft * en-
gagement.
* See this, the ecclefiaftical law of England, vol. i-
p. 30, ifl edit. — p. 31. 2d edit.
Le:ter
[ i43 3
Letter 167. He writes to the bijhop of
Mans? to hind carriage of one who
had already engaged himfelf to another wo-
man .
Letter 174. He affures Mathilda,
Queen of England, that he will pray for
the foul of he*- brother (Edgar, King of
Scotland, who died without iflue anno
1 107 ;) for though he doubts not but his
foul is in Abraham s boforn, yet, fince we
cannot be certain of the ftate of fouls in
the other world, it is a piece of com-
mendable devotion to pray even for thofe
in heaven, that their happinefs may be aug-
mented, and for thofe in purgatory, that
their fins may be forgiven them.
Letter 187. He admonimes the Couii-
tefs of Chartres, to leave troubling the
abbot and monks of Bonneval, on account
of the murder of Hugh the black. Qu ?
If Hugh the black had murdered the abbot
and monks, whether this good bijhop would
have been fo merciful?
9 Letter 202. He admomfhes Daimbert,
archbifhop of Sens, to correct two fcanda-
lous abuks in his church ; one, of the
chaunters holding another preferment,
contrary to his oath ; the other, in one
of the chapter* keeping in his houfe two
"women of ill fame.
Letter 205. Is written to a knight,
who fufpected his wife to be with child by
another, becaufe he had been abfent from.
her
[ '44 ]
Cent. \\tr feven days longer than is ufual, between
- the times or conception and bringing forth,
and becaufe the peribn, whom he fui-
pected of being too familiar with her, had
been burnt in palling the trial of ordeal.
As to the computation of time, Ivo tells*
him, that ought not to fway him, fince
many women go much longer with.child *
and for the trial by fre, no heed is to be
given to it : io that thefe two re&fons
prove nothing again ft the honefty of his
wife; whofe oath, and the good word of
her neighbours and acquaintance, ought
fully to fuffice in vindication of her.
Letter 218. He writes to Gualon, bi-
mop of Paris, that the canon of that church,
who had lately been married, ought to
lofe his preferment, and be degraded from
being a clergyman, but that his marriage
muft remain good and valid.
Letter 221. To John, biihop of Or-
leans, concerning a freeman 'S having mar-
ried a Jlave, without knowing her to be-
fo. Ivo fays, that by the civil law, the
marriage is void, and he may quit her,
and marry another woman ; but that, by
the laws of * God and nature, they ought
to keep together, or at leait, if he put
her away, he may not marry again.
Letter 222. To the clergy of AutunT
he enquires, if a woman, who has been
* Qu ? When the civil law contradi&s the laws of
God and nature, which 19 to be followed ?
guilty
i 145 1
guilty of adultery, muft neceflarily be jg- Cent.
forced from her hufband ? and concludes,
that, in ftrictnefs, {he ought -, but by the
wifdom of the go/pel, fuch a temper was
prefcribedas may reconcile her to her huf-
band.
Letter 242. To Owen, bifhop of Eu-
reux, he explains himfelf concerning his
having given his opinion that a freeman,
who had married a flave, without knowing
her to be fuch, ought to be divorced from
her ; and adds, that this is not diiTolving a
lawful marriage, but only declaring that it
is unlawful for them to live together any
longer, their marriage being null by law — ■
r. e. the civil \ivr. See befofe, p. 144.
Letter 145. To Hugh, earl of Troyes,
who having lifted himfelf for the holy land,
defigned to put away his wife, and live in
celibacy*— he commends his refolution.
Letter 246. He declares, that it is not
allowable for a man to marry two fijlers
fucceflively, though*the marriage with the
former was never cenfummated.
Letter 162. To Pontius, abbot of
Cluny, he mews him the reafon, why, in
the confecration of the cup, at the Lord's
fupper, the words " my fiery of fait ti* are
added, which were not ufed by our Sa-
viour, at the inftitution of the [acr anient ;
and fays, that this is done, becaufe we judge
of the greatnefs of the nryjiery contained in
it, not by the fenfes, but bv faith.
Vol. Ill, L N. B,
[ H6 }
CJ?7' N. B. To believe what contradifts the
L. fen/es, is not faith , but folly. — See Locke,
Hum. Und. b. iv. c. 18.
The Contents of the XVII. parts of the
Decretal.
VII. Is of the retirement and fingle lives
of monks and nuns, and of the penance to
be undergone for the breach of the vow of
continency.
XV. Of penances, and commutations of
penances. — N. B. See Thelyph. App. to
chap. X.
Pope Paschal II.
Held a fecond Lateran council, in the
which he made an oration to the bijhops
there affembled, anno 11 16, on the infal-
libility of the church, and to prove that it
had never been guilty of herejy, nor, as it
fhould feem, ever could. — It is for this
church, faid he, that the Son of God prayed,
juft before His paffion, when he faid —
Peter, I have prayed for thee, that thy faith
fail not. — N. B. It is to be remarked, that
thefe people feldom quote fcripture, but, as~
the Devil did, to abufe it.
Council of Rheims, anno 11 19.
Here Pope Calixtus II. publifhed fve
canons.
Can. 5. A gain ft the priejls, deacons, and
Jub-deacons, who had wives or concubines.
Lateran
[ H7 3
Later an Council, anno 112?. Cent.
XII
Can. 3. Renews the prohibitions made -
by the laws of the church, again ft clerks
having wives or concubines, or to live with
women; excepting fuch as are exempted
by the council of Nice.
Can. 5. Renews the prohibition of
marriage among relations.
Can. 21 . Does again prohibit the mar-
riages of the clergy, and declares the mar-
riages which they have contracted null.
This is the canon (fays Du Pin J which ex-
preffly pronounces the nullity of the mar-
riages of fuch perfons as are in holy or-
ders.
The Pope wrote to the clergy of Ter-
rouane, that they ought not faffer any mar-
ried clergy among them.
St. Bernard.
William, Duke of Guicnne, having quar-
relled with the bifhop of PoiBiers, refufed
to be reconciled to him : to furmount his
obftinacy, Saint Bernard took the blejfedfa-
crament, and carrying it to the place
where the duke was, conjured him in the
name of Jefus, and with fuch terrible
words, that the frightened duke fell flat
' upon the ground, and was forced to be
reconciled to the bifhop of Poicliers.
Among other things, St. Bernard affured
the duke, that the bon of God was come in
L 2 perfcn
[ 148 ]
Cent, per/on * to him. This faint was a great hero
XII. in monkery, and at his death left behind
him near 160 monajleries of his order,
founded by him.
Pope EuGenius III.
Writes to Hildegarda, abbefs of Mont
St. Rupert, commending her Jpirit of pro-
phecy, advifing her to preferve, by her hu-
mility, God's grace granted unto her, and
always to make ufe of prudence, in the un-
folding of thofe myjleries which God had
revealed to her.
In this century various feels of heretics
arofe, fome of which maintained, that
*' the forbidden fruit was Adams, carnal
" knowledge of Eve,11 and that " no
" perfon could be faved in a married Hate."
Thefe called themfelves Cathari, or Puri-
tans. Abfurd and unfcriptural as thefe
herejies were, yet they were as defenfible as
Jerome's — Coitus prcemium mors. — the celi-
bacy of the clergy — and monkery. The only
very material difference between the Catha-
rijls and their oppojers, feems to have been,
that the latter had the authority of the
church to maintain their errors, while
the former were unprotected by priejlly
power in theirs. Thus —
Little villains mnjl fuhm'it to fate,
'That great ones may enjoy the world inflate.
Garth.
* Is it polnblc, that, when St. Bernard told this
[winger^ he could believe it himfelf ?
Peter
[ H9 1
Peter Abelard. Cent.
The hiftory of this unfortunate man is xn*
well known. I will only obferve, that all
the naileries he underwent, were wholly oc-
cafioned by the enormdus and wicked infti-
tution of clerical celibacy. His ftory is told
at large in Du Pin, Cent. 12. chap. 7.
One of the errors imputed to this father^
is, that he maintained, the bread and wine
at the altar 9 to remain the fame infabjiance
after confecratwn, as before it.
Pope Alexander III.
Letter 23. Inveighs zgainft clande/tine mar-
riages, that were contracted without the be-
nediclion of zpriejh See Thelypb* vol. ii. 149
— 156, 1 ft edit. p. 141 — 149, 2d edit.
Hildebert Bifhop of Mans. After-
wards Archbtjhop of Tours.
Letter 7. He determines that a virgin, be-
trothed before fhe was marriageable, whofe
hufband died without knowing her carnally,
cannot marry the brother of her former huf-
band9bec2i\ik marriage does not con lift in car-
nal copulation 9but in the confent of theparties.
Letter 34.. He declares, that he refufedto
approve the intended marriage of zcount, with
one of his kin/women; although it might put
an end to a war, which was carried on be-
tween him and his future^ at her -in-law.
Letter 51. Is a large refutation of a
perfoi), who revived the error of Vigilantius,
L 3 viz.
[ r5o ]
Cent. viz. u That the invocation of faints was un-.
1__ C( profitable, becaufe they do not hear our
f* prayers, and have no knowledge of tranf-r
" actions on earth." — This man gave out,
that Hildebert was of his mind; which ob-
liged him, not only to difown that opinion,
but alfo to JJjew, by the tefiimony of the fa-
thers, that the faints hear our prayers, and
that they make inter cefjion for us with God.
Ernulphus, Bifhop of Rochester,
Wrote to Waqvelin, bifhop of Windfor, in
anfwer to a queflion, which that bifhop pro-
poled to him in a conference at Canter-
bury, viz. " Whether a woman, commit-
" ting adultery with her hufband's fon
" by a former wife, ought to be divorced
" from her hufband?" He maintained the
affirmative-, the bifljop, to whom he wrote,
the negative. In this treatife, he Jhews,
that all the paffages of fcripture in which
'tis forbidden to part man and wife, ought
only to be understood of a voluntary fepa-
ration, between perfons who are not guilty
of adultery ; and afterwards confirms his
opinion, by making it appear, that the bi-
foops, to prevent diforders, have often con-
demned adulterers, to abftain for ever from
the ufe of marriage i that it is the ufual
cujlorn of the church-, that this punifhment is
ordained in the penitential books-, and that a
divorce is juftly allowed on account of jpi-
r it ual alliance (as being godfathers and god-
mothers.
[ i5i ]
mothers, either at baptifm or confirmation, Cent.
and the like) although it be not exprelied XI*\
in fcripture as adultery. He adds, that 'tis
not unjuft, that a hufband ihould be di-
vorced from his wife, although he be inno-
cent of the crime committed by her; and
that there are many other caufcs, for which
a hufband is obliged to put away his wife.
Peter of Blois, Archdeacon of Bath.
Letter 83. Advifes the bijhop of Exeter
to declare the marriage null, tliat was con-
tracted between Robert and IJmenia his
kin/woman, according to the exprejs order
he had received from the Pope.
Hugh Archbifhop of Roan, amiG 1 1 30,
Wrote a difcourfe on the dignity of the
clergy — of the manners of clerks — of the ce-
libacy which they are obliged to obkrve —
of the vow of chajlity,
Peter Lombard,
Called mafter of the fentences. He was
efteemed the chief of all the fchool- divines,
and his writings were in greater repute
than the Bible. (See Mojheim, edit. Machine,
vol. i. p. 600. n.) This*'man found out that
there were feven facraments under the new
law, of which marriage is one. He wrote
a book on the holy facraments, in which he
treats of the antiquity of the facrament of
marriage — He enquires of what marriage
L 4 confijls—*
[ Ijff ]
Cevt. conjljls — diftinguifhes a promife of future
. ^*** marriage, from marriage contra&ed by the
prefent conjhit of the parties — gives an ao
count of the conditions that ought to be an-
nexed to fuch a confent as is necejfary for
confummation of marriage — explains the ad-
vantages of marriage, which are, fidelity \
the lawful procreation of children, and the
benefit of the facr anient : — he difcourfes of
matters relative to the continency of mar-
ried perfons at certain times — relates di-
vers con fi derations of the fathers, with re-
fpecl: to the polygamy of the patriarchs: — he
treats of the impediments, that render per-
fons incapable of contracting marriage, and
which make their marriage void and of
none effec~l. See Thelyph. vol. ii. 147, ill
edit. — p. 139, 2d edit.
He fhews that a man may be divorced
from his wife for adultery, and that they
may be afterwards reconciled — that he who
has committed adultery with a woman,
may marry her after her hufband's death,
provided he were not acceffary to his death,
and did not promife to marry the wife in
his life-time. — He treats of the impedi-
ment which arifes from the difference of
age and condition fctween the parties con^
trading,
He difcourfes of the injunction of celi-
bacy obferved by bifhops, priefis, deacons^
and fub- deacons, and of Pope Calixtus ordi-
nance, declaring fuch marriages null.
9 This
[ 153 ]
This great Dofior taught, that, if the Gta*Q
firft man had notfnned, thofe who are now x^y
damned, would not have been brought forth
into the world; and that St. Benedict had
as clear a knowledge of God in this world,
as the blejjed fpirits have in heaven*
M The book of fentences, which rendered
" the name of Peter Lombard fo illuftrious,
" was a compilation of fentences, and paf-
" fages, drawn from the fathers, whofe
" manifold contradictions, this eminent pre-
u late endeavoured to reconcile. This work
" was the wonder of the 12th Century, and
" is little more than an object of contempt in
" ours," Mojheim, Macl. vol. i. p. 598. n.
Council of London, anno 1125.
Clerks are prohibited to cohabit with
ftrange women. — Marriages are prohibited
between relations to the feventh degree.
Council of Cassel, in Ireland, i 172.
Can. 1. All the faithful in Ireland, (hall
be obliged, not to intermarry with their
near relations, but to contrail lawful mar-
riages.
Council of Avran^hes, 1 172.
Can. 10. Forbids an hufband to turn
monk, whilft his wife remains in a fecular
jiate, unlefs both are too old to have chil-
dren— the fame with refpect to the wife.
Can. 13,
f 154 ]
Cent. Can. 13. Relates to perquijites claimed
XI** for the benedictions of marriages.
N. B. After marriage was determined to
be a facrament, the church was at no fmall
trouble, how to reconcile the taking mo-
ney for the adminijiration of it. However,
Stephen Langton, archbijljop of Canterbury ,
Cent. XIII. made the matter eafy by the
following injunction.
Ci We do firmly injoin, that no facra-
" ment of the church fhall be denied to any
" one, upon the account of any fum of
*' money, nor fhalJ matrimony be hindred
'* therefore: becaufe, if any thing hath
" been accuftomed to be given by the pious
<l devotion of the faithful, we will that
" jujiice be done thereupon to the churches
" by the ordinary of the place afterwards.'*
See Burns Eccl. Law, tit. Marriage.
Council of London, anno 1 175.
Can. 1. They who have entered into
holy orders, and keep a concubine, wrhom they
refufe to expel, (hall be deprived of office
and benefice.
Clerks below a fub-deacon, and are mar-
ried, fhall not be divorced from their wives,
but fhall no longer enjoy their fpiritual
livings.
Sub-deacons, and thofe in fuperior orders,
who contract marriage, fhall be compelled
to part with their wives. The Jons of priejis
fhall
/hall be incapable to fucceed their fathers. Cent,
in the churches poflefled by them. ***•
Can. 1 8. Clandejiine marriages are for-
bidden.
Can. 19. Prohibits marrying children
that are not come to age of maturity, un-
lels in cafe of necefjity, or for promoting
fieace.
Synod of York, anno 1105.
Can. 4. More than three perfons fhall
not be required to itand as fureties it the
b apt ifmal font , viz. Two godfathers And one
godmother for a boy; or two god- mothers and
one god father for a girl.
N. B. The rubric of the Protej.ant
church of England, confirmed by ail of par-
liament, has adopted this wife regulation.
Can. 12. Renews the prohibitions lb of-
ten made, that clergymen fhould keep un-
chajie correfpondence with women, and re-
gulates the maimer of trying thofe who are
accufed of that crime.
Second General Council of Lateran,
i*39-
Can. 6. Sub-deacons, or thofe in higher
orders, if the} marry, or keep concubines,
lhall be deprived of their offices and bene-
fices*
Can. 7. Prohibits hearing mafj'es of priejis
who are married, or keep concubines — de-
clares the marriage of prufts to be null',
and
[ 156 I
Cent, and ordains that thofe who have contracted
**• ,. it, {hall be divorced and put to penance.
Can. 8. Regulates the fame things, with
refpect to virgins confecrated to God, if
they marry.
Can. 17. Re-enforces the laws againfl:
marrying relatwis.
Third General Council of Lateran, .
anno 1 179.
Can. 7. Condemns abufes, which paffed
into a cuftom, of exacting money for the
benediction of marriages.
Can. 11. Renews the prohibition, fo of-
ten reiterated, with refpefl: to the clergy
companying with women ; condemns fodo*
mites to very fevere punifhments; and for-
bids eccleliaftical perfons to frequent the
monafleries of nuns, unlefs upon fome emer-
gent occafion.
Ivo bifhop of Cbartres, on being afked,
Whether it wras lawful for a man to marry
his concubine? anfwered — That fome laws
forbid it, others have permitted 'it ; and leaves
the whole matter to the difcretion and judg-*
ment of the bifiops.
C E N-
[ *57 3
CENTURY XIII. Cent.
XIII.
Pope Innocent III.
In a letter to the bi(hop of Marji, he de-
cides the following cafe, viz. A man mar-
ried a woman, with whom he had before
been carnally acquainted: after that, he
married another, by whom he had had chil~
dren. The jirft woman demands, either
that he may live with her, or elfe that me
may have leave to marry another. The Pope
anfwers, " That if this man married the
" former by verba de prcefenti, he then
" ought to return to her; but if per verba
" defuturoy they muft then both have ape-
M nance injoined them, and the woman be
M at liberty to marry whom fhe would."
N. B. By this time, the reader muft be
fuppofed to fee, how, and by what degrees,
marriage, and all that belonged to it, was
taken out of God's hands, into the hands of
?nen, and how the word of God began to
be of no avail in the matter. — But to pro-
ceed.
Letter 45, He determines that women
may come into the church, in a fhort time
after their lying-in-, but yet, if they think
Xojlay away out of re/peB, their devotion is
not to be condemned.
Letter 92. Is againft the incejiuous mar-
riage of the king ofCcfiiUs daughter, with
the
XIII.
[ 158 ]
Ce^nt. the king of Leon. He charges Cardinal
Rainier to excommunicate them if they did
not part.
Letter 102. He tells the chapter of Spo-
letto, that the marriage of a man, with a con-
cubine, which he kept while his wife was
alive, is valid; except it could be proved,
that one of them had a hand in her death.
Letter 326. He gave leave to the biJJjop
of Faience to remove to the bifhopric of
Pavia. There are very pretty things in this
letter (fays Du Pin) about the Jpiritual mar-
.riage of a bi/ljop with the church his Jpouje.
What is faid in fcripture of the indifjolubi-
lity of a carnal marriage, he prefumes may
be as well applied to the Jpiritual. He adds,-
that it fhould feem, then, as if it were not
in the power of the Pope to break the Jpiri-
tual marriage of a bifhop with his church:—^
and yet Custom, which is the inter-
preter of the Laws, and the holv
Canons, always gave full power to the holy
fee, to which alone belong the placing, the
depofmg, the tranflatingoi biihops: wherein,-
he faith, the Popes do not exercife human
authority,but that of Jesus Christ, whofe
vicars they are. Laftly, he declares that he
confents to this tranjlation, merely for the
good which would enfue to the church of
Pavia.
Letter 362. He decides the cafe of a man
who was accufed of adultery by his wife,
thus; that judgment could not be given
3 < upon
[ 159 ]
upon an information that was made lite nan Cent,
contejlata ; and all that could be done, was XI11'
to excommunicate the man for refufing to
make his appearance*
N. B. We may obferve whence eccle-
fiajiical courts took cognizance of matrimo-
nial caufes, and whence the dreadful engine
of excommunication proceeded, for contempts
of their ufurped authority.
Letter 380. He declared a marriage null,
becaufe the woman had, before they were
married, been god-mother to a natural fonx
which the man had by another woman.
Letters 28, 29, 30. Are about a crooked
man, that had married a widow, being cho-
fen bijhop of Cambray. — He declares the
election null.
Letter 455. A religious vow, made be-
fore the year of probation, is valid. That
the vow of a married perfon ought not to
be accepted, except Jhe likewife, to whom
he is married, makes a vow of perpetual
continence*
Letter 458. He confirms the fentencs
given in favour of the church of St. Paul* .
about the privilege of having a font, and
baptizing-, which was difputed by the church
of St. Mary of Cervaro, near Monte-Caf-
fmo.
Letter 514. Determines, that the mar-
riage of infidels with fuch as were akin to
them, could not be dilTolved when they
turned Chrijiians.
Letter
[ i6o ]
Cekt. Letter 50, Book 2. Though the marri*
j™- age between infidels be diffblved, when one
of them is converted to the faith, yet it is
not the fame thing of thofe who were mar-
ried while they were believers, when one of
them becomes an heretic or Pagan.
Letter 66. He determined, that not only
thofe, who have contracted two valid mar-
riages, are to be accounted bigamous, but
thofe too who have contra&ed fuch as were
nulled; becaufe, that although they were
not in fa£io bigamijls, for want of the Sa-
crament, yet the intention of being fo
was the fame; and there was a fault com-
mitted befides, therefore he wrould not have
a difpcnfation granted to fuch, as there is to
other bigamous perfons.
Letter 178. From the archbijhop of 15/-
oclia and Antivari to the Pope-, in which
he prefents him with the orders made by
the legates of the holy fee, about the celibacy
of the clergy — the degrees of affinity within
which it is not allowable to marry— Laftly
— A prohibition from putting the children
. of pr lefts, or bafards, into holy orders.
Letter 229. Clergymen not to be allowed
to have any women live with them, except
they be of their kindred.
Letter 232. He declared, that a woman,
who had taken upon her a vow of chajtity*
to avoid being married^ but upon condition
of tarrying in her own houfe, and had af*
terwards married a man, by whom fhe had
children,
[ i6i ]
children, ought to take her religious habit Cent,
again, and ob/erve her vow. ^
Letter 261. To the bifhop of Rofano,
in which he anfwers divers queftions.
1. That the kindred of a woman might
marry the kindred of her husband. 2. That
although husband and wife are god-father
and god-?nother to a child, yet they do not
thereby contract any fuch compaternity, as
can hinder them from living as man and
wife. 3. The Ltil/Vz priefts might neither
have wives nor concubines. Laftly — that
the chaplains of Roffano had nothing to do
with the validity or invalidity of marriages.
— Qu? Who or what, but God and his
word, have any thing to do either with the
one or the other?
Letter j, Book 5. He determined, that
thzfon of a god-father could not marry the
daughter of 'the god-mother to the fame child,
although he was born before they baptized
the child. That if thefe two perfons had
married, they ought to be parted, and that
whofoever knew of 2x\y fuch thing they ought
to difcover it.
Letter 48. To the archbifiop of Rheims,
about the defign of Philip King of France
to get himfelf feparated from his wife. He
wrote alfo to that prince upon the fubjedl :
he talks with him about his complaining
of harder ufage than other princes had met
with on the like occafion, feeing that King
Lewis his father, the Emperor Frederic,
Vol, III. M and,
i
Cent.
XIII.
[ 162 ]
and, very lately, * "John King of "England*
had been feparated from their wives, by the
judgment of their prelates and ejiates,
which the holy fee had, without any Jcruple,
confirmed. The P^ anfwers — " They
were his legates who feparated the Em-
peror Frederic ; and that King Lewis, and
the i£//zg" of England, were parted by
their prelates, but that was becaufe
there had been no complaint made to
the holy fee -, which was the very reafon
why the judgment was not revoked,
becaufe no body protefled againft it:
but the matter now in hand had been
laid before the holy fee-, Pope Celejlin had
revoked the fentence of divorce, and had
fent his legates into France, who per-
haps might have put an end to the;
affair, if he had not eluded their judg-
ment: that it was in the power of the
holy fee, not only to annul the fentence,
but likewife to ufe cenfures againft thofe
that had given it: as Pope Nicholas had
done againft Gontiertts archbifhop of Co-
logn, and Tetgaudus archbifhop of Treves,
for having divorced King Lotharius of
Tetberge"
Letter 128. Is to William Earl of Mon-
pellier, who had, by the archbifoop of Aries %
defired the Pope to legitimate his children.
Innocent proves firft of all, that the legiti-*
* See Rapin, vol. i, p. 262. fol. edit.
mation
[ i63 ]
mation of the holy fee is valid, not only in Cf.kt,
what concerns the fpir it ua Is but the tempo- ^***'
rah too : an J, becaufe this Earl alledges the
example of the King of France s children,
which Philip had by a wife which he took
after having left Ifemburga, to obtain the
fame favour for thofe whom he had by
a wife that was married in the fame manner,
Innocent tells him, there is a great deal of
difference, i. Becaufe the King of France
by his lawful wife had a fon who was pre-
emptive heir of the crown- — whereas he
had no fon by his lawful wife. 2. Becaufe
the King of France had no more from the
holy fee than what concerned thcfpirituals —
whereas he deli red it both for fpirituals and
temporals, 3. Becaufe the King had not left
his wife 'till divorced by the archhifoop of
Rheims, and had thefe lawful iffue by the
other wife, before the holy fee had forbidden
him to live with her — whereas he had ob-
ferved no form nor law in the matter.
4. Becaufe the King, acknowledging no
fuperior in temporals, had fubmitted him-
felf to the holy fee in this cafe, though per-
haps he could have given himfelf this dif-
penfation as to temporals;— but as for him
(the Earl) who depended upon other Jove-
reigns, this difpenfation could not be grant-
ed him, without incroaching upon their
right, and he could not grant it to him-
felf.
About the end, he begins to eftablifh the
M 2 power,
[ 1 64 ]
Cent, power, which he had, not only over the
X temporality of St. Peter s patrimony, but
over that of other ftates.
u This audacious prelate had the honour
" of introducing and eftablifhing the ufe
" of the term tranfubftantiation, which was
" hitherto abfolutely unknown. He alfo
" placed, by his own authority, among the
" divine laws, that of auricular confef-
" jion to zpriejl." Mojheim. Mad. vol. i.
P. 683.
" About the conclufion of this century
<c Boniface VIII. added to the public rites
<c and ceremonies of the church, the famous
" jubilee, ft ill celebrated at Rome, at a dated
<c period, with the utmoft profufion of
" pomp and magnificence." Mojh. ib.
Pope Innocent IV. anno 1243.
Letter 10. To his legate in Cyprus, de-
termines, that married priefts, having the
care of fouls, ought not to be hindered from
taking the confeffions of penitents, to en-
join penances, and to ad: in their name. — -
That fornication foluti cum folut La was a deadly
fin — (Qu? If his holinefs meant any thing
more by fornication, than the a& of thofe
who came together without the facr anien t
of marriage, as it was now called ?) — that
the Greeks ought not to condemn all third
^nA fourth marriages — that the priefts fhould
not give their bleffing upon fecond marri-
ages— that they fhould not marry, fa as they
did,
[ i6S ]
did, within the fourth degree — that tliGfe Cent,
Greeks who acknowledged that the fouls of X
thofe who died, not wholly cleanjed, might
exift after death, and be eafed by the prayers
of the living, were obliged to call the place
where they are — purgatory.
Gregory ,the Tenth, anno 1271.
Among his other letters, there is one to
the bifliop of Liege, who was depojed, in the
council of Lyons, for his incontinency.
Manuel Charitopula Patriarch of
Constantinople.
Inftitut. 1. Women, forfaken by their
hufbands, of whom they have heard no news
for Jive years together, may afterwards
marry.
The bifhop of Pella alks, what penance
ought to be infli&ed on priejls, by whofe
negligence it happens, ^that the confecrated
bread is eaten by rats? and what ought to
be done, when, the prieft being at the altar,
a moufe happens by chance to eat the confe-
crated hoft?
We may remember, that fome time ago,
a father of the Latin church declared againft
Berenger, that neither mice nor other vermin
would touch it. See before p. 113.
Qu? 4. Laics above 40 years old, and
that have been married twice, and have
children, may not marry again.
Qu? 6. What punifhment thofe priejls
M ^ deferve.
[ i66 ]
Cent, deferve, who celebrate marriages in Lent%
XIII. and vyhat one ought to think of fuch mar-
riages ? Anf. Thofe priejls who did it out of
ignorance and fimplicity, ought to bear lefs
puniihment than if they did it wilfully •> but
fuch marriages are valid.
Council of Paris, anno 1212.
Can. 4. Prohibits the clergy, from having
women in their houfes.
Can. 21. Forbids monks; to lie two in a
bed. That the nuns Mzfngle.
Can. 14. The abbots not to (u^cv young
women to come into mc.nafteries.
Can. 20. To extirpate that crime which
is odious to name.
Can. 21. To punifh that diforder fe-
verely, according to the rule made in the
Later an council.
Fourth Lateran Council, anno 1215,
under Innocent III.
Can. 50. Repeals the prohibition of mar-
riage in the fecond and third degree of af-
finity^ and between children iffuing from a
fecond marriage and the relations of a former
hulband; and reftrains the degrees wherein1
marriages were unlawful, to the fourth de-
gree of confanguinity.
Can. 51. Prohibits tfan$efline marriages,
and orders that the priejls fhall publifh
banns in churches, that lo fuch impediments
as are lawful may be objected againft them.
Penalties
r i67 ]
Penalties are alfo inflidled on thofe who Cent.
countenance or authorize incefluous or clan- XIII.
defiine marriages.
N. Z?. By ince/luous, are here meant, fuch
marriages as are not within the degrees al-
lowed by the canons. The Bible is out§f the
que/Hon. — N. B. The origin of banns.
Council of Oxford, anno 1222.
Can. 19. Prohibits rural deans from
taking cognizance of matrimonial caufes.
Can. 42. Advocates, who (hall difpute the
validity of a marriage r, which fhall be de-
clared good by the fentence of a judge, fhall
be fufpended for a year.
Council of Mentz, anno 1225.
Can. 1, 2, 3, Againft clerks who keep
concubines.
Can. 5. Declares legacies of church
goods, by clerks, to their natural children,
or foncubines, null. 0-
Council of Chateau Gonthier,
anno 1231.
Can. 1. Prelates ought not to tolerate
clandeftine marriages, and to proceed with-
out delay and without cxcufe, to the divorc-
ing of thofe who had contracted them,
Comp. Mat. xix. 6. and Stat. 26 Geo. II.
c. 3 3.-— the marriage- aft.
Can. 34. Prohibits, under pain of ex-
communication, the contracting of marriage
M 4 till
[ i68 ]
Cent, till after the banns have been publifhed ;
L that fo an engagement to many may be
granted, and given in the face of the con->
gregation.
Council of Arles, anno 1234.
Can. 3. Heretics to be rooted out.
Can. 6. Condemned to perpetual im-
prifonment — thofe who will recant, to be
delivered up to the fecular power — every
Sunday an excommunication (hall be pub-
limed again ft heretics and their favourers.
Council of L/isle en Provence, anno
1 25 1.
Can. the laft. Againft clandejline mar-
riages.
Council of Tours, anno 1236.
Can. 8. Declares thofe who contract
two marriages at a time infamous, and to be
whipped.
Council of London, anno 1237.
Can. 1. Concerns the dedication of
churches, and implies, that it derived its
original from the Old and New Tejlaments,
and has been obferved by the holy fathers
under the New. That it ought to be fo-
lemnized with greater dignity and care,
fmce then they only offered facrifices of
dead beafls, whereas now they offer on the
altary
[ i69 ]
altar, by the hands of the priefi, a living Cent.
and true facrifice, namely, the only Son of _ _ '.
God ; therefore the fat hers have with rea~
fon ordered, that fo fublime an office fhould
be celebrated only in confecrated places,
&c.
N. B. How one lye begets another, and
how th£y travel on from generation to gene-
ration !
Can. 15. To prevent fome marriages,
which fome clerks contracted clandejlinely ',
to fave their benefices, declares the chil-
dren born of fuch marriages incapable of
holding benefices.
Can. 16. Renews the ecclefiaftical fta-
tutes againft clerks who keep concubines.
Can. 17. Prohibits children of clerks
from poffefling the benefices of their fa-
thers.
Can. 23. Care fhall be taken to place
able judges, efpecially in matrimonial caufes ;
and that the judges of abbots who are in
pofTeflion, fhall not pafs a definitive fen-
tence, 'till after they have confulted the bi-
jloop of the diocefe. — Qui? Who placed ma-
trimonial caufes in the hands of ecclefafical
judges ?
Council of Cognac, anno 1238.
Can. 9. The bifiops fhall fee that the
fentences of excommunication, iffued out by
their colleagues, be duly executed in their
diocefes.
Caq,
XIII,
[ 170 ]
*^TNTT' Can. 10. That none mall be commif-
fioned to try caufes of matrimony , but able
and difcreet perfons.
Can. ii. Excommunicates /ay-judges,
-who oblige ecclejiajlics to plead before them.
— N. B. How glorioufly was the power of
churchmen now increafed !
Here we may fee, whate'er we fee befide,
The laymen bridled, and the clergy ride.
Council of Saumur, anno 1253.
Can. 11. Prohibits the admitting any
canon, who is not born in lawful wedlock :
i. e. according to the laws of the church.
Can. 27. Prohibits clandejiine marriages.
Council of Alby, anno 1254.
Can. 41. Prohibits priejls from keep-
ing women within the inclofures of the
church.
Council of Arles, anno 1260.
Can. 4. None mall contrad: marriage
without leave of the church. — Bravo! This
is /peaking out.
Council of Cognac, anno 1260.
Can. 5. Prohibits curates from marry-
ing of women of another parifh, without
the conjent of their curate.
Counci*
[ ijri 3
Council of Bourdeaux, anno 1262. Cent.
Can. 5. Thofe who fhall contract clan- XIIL
fiejiine marriages, both the minijters and wit-
fiejfes, fhall be excommunicated, and fufpended
ab officio & beneficio. Thofe 7narriages (hall
fce reckoned clandefiine, which are not con-
tracted by the proper curate or pajior of the
Jiufband or the wife, with the confent of
Jthe other curate.
Council of London, 1268.
Can. 3. Churches {hall be confecrated.
Can. 14. Againft thofe who obftrucT:
the celebration of matrimony.
Can. [5. Relates to wills and tejlaments,
and obliges the executor to renounce the
right which he hath to plead in his jurif*
-di&ion.
Council of Langeis, anno 1276.
Can. 3. Againft clandefiine marriages.
Can. 4. Againft priejis keeping in their
houfes children born of their concubines, and
from bequeathing any thing to them.
N. B. See 1 Tim. v. 8.
Council of Bud a, 1279.
Can. 26. Prohibits clerks from keep-
ing in their houfes the children which they
have had whilft in holy orders, and declares
thofe children to be the vajfals of the church.
Can. 39. Referves the cognizance of
matrimonial
[ 172 ]
Cent, matrimonial caufes to prudent and difcreet
•X111* perfons.
Can. 4. Prohibits ecclefiajlics from keep-
ing concubines.
Council of Ravenna, anno 1286.
Can. 8. Againft clandejiine marriages.
Council of Bourges, 1286.
Can. 2. Prohibits clandejiine marriages.
Can. 3. Prohibits ecclefiajlical judges
from cognizance of matrimonial caufes out
of their jurifdiBion.
Can. 24. Prohibits women inhabiting
in the houfes of monks.
Synodal Canons of Peter, Biihop of
Exeter,
Contain an inftrudtion to his clergy
about the seven sacraments, and about
the celebration of marriage — appeals —
quejlors — the relics of faints — laft wills and
tejl anient s — excommunications 9 &c. &c. cum
tnultis aliis, qua nunc prcefcribere longum ejl.
Council of L'isle in Provence, anno
1288.
Can 14. Againft thofe who give poifon
or phyfic to caufe abortion. — Mark, reader,
this horrid evil, and from whence it fprang;
even from leaving the laws of God and na-
ture, for the doftrines and commandments of
men !
Council
[ *73 3
Council of Saltzburgh, anno 1291. Ceny.
XIII
Can. 1. It is ordered, that to remedy \
the abufe of marriages clandejlinely con-
traded, there fhall be fix honeft and cre-
ditable perfons, of the neighbourhood or
parifh of the contractors, who fhall be pre-
sent, and ferve as witnej/es of the marriage.
The fame canon iffues forth the penalty
of excommunication, ipfo fafto, againft thofe
who fhall tranfgrefs this order, or fhall be
prefent at clandejiine marriages, or fhall fuf-
fer them to be contracted in their houfes.
— N. B. What wicked pains did thefey^/-
lows take to bring grift to their mill !
Waldenses or Vaudois, and Albi-
GENSES.
Amidft all the darknefs, fuperftition, and
folly of Popery, God did not leave himfelf
without witnerTes of his truth. Thefe poor
people, though perfecuted with all the ma-
lice and cruelty that Hell ox Rome could in-
vent, nobly flood in defence of God's word
againft the Popijh encroachments. Their
tenets were called berefy, and their perfons
heretics, becaufe they oppofed the doBrines
of the fcriptures to the inventions of men.
-—Among other things, they condemned
the ceremonies ufed in the celebration of
marriage, as having no foundation in the
word of God — they taught — " that the
fl confent of a willing couple, without the
cc formality
[ 174 1
Cent. " formality of facer -dotal benediction, made"
XI11- " a lawful marriage." — They did not ac-
knowledge the fpiritual alliance [as be-
tween godfathers and godmothers] nor
the impediments of affinity and confangui-
nity appointed by the church — no more
than thofe of public order and decency
[i. e. the throwing marriage into the hands
of priefts, and the ceremonies invented and
ufed thereon] thus cafting a blemiih on the
sacrament of marriage. That women
needed no benediction after their lying-in
[this we call churching of women.] That the
church was wrong in prohibiting the clergy
from marrying. — They invocated no faints*
but worfhipped God alone—- they defpifed
the canonizations, tr anflations , and vigils of
the faints — they taught, that the doftrine
of Jesus Christ and the apoflles is fuffi-
cient to falvation, without being obliged
to obferve the laws of the church, and that
the tradition of the church is the tradition
of the Pharifees — that the church of Rome
is not the church of Christ, but a church
of wicked men ; and that it has ceafed from
being the church of Christ ever fince the
time of Pope Syhefer — (Du Pin calls him
St. Syhefler) — when the poifon of tempo-
ralities enteredinto the church: — they denied
purgatory, and tranfubjlantiation by the
hands of a prieft.
Thefe, and other as great herefies, did
thefe excellent reformers teach. For which
9 an
t 175 ]
an open war was carried on againft them, cENT<
under the general name of Albigenfes, XIII.
which, after the utmoft exertions of cruelty,
and of the moft barbarous maffacres, ended
in their definition. — See Mojheim, MacL
vol. i. p. 700. Thefe might well be num-
bered among the champions for the word
of God — of whom the world was not worthy*
Heb. xi. 38. Du Pin ranks them among
thofe heretics, who fubverted the fundamen-
tals of the Chriftian religion, by openly op-
pugning the authority, the facr anient s, the
ceremonies, and the difcipline of the church*
The Inquisition.
It may perhaps lead me for a while from
the immediate and particular fubjedts of
this book, but I cannot help obferving here,
that, in this [century, appeared that monjler
of all monfiers, that moil horribje, iniqui-
tous, hellifh tribunal, the Court of Inquiji-
tion, the moil formidable engine of church
power that ever was invented. It was ge-
nerated between the ecclefiaflical courts, and
the great whore, mentioned Rev. xvii. 1.5.
xix. 2. and it may be truly faid, that of ail
the abominations of which Jhe has been the
mother, this has been the moft dangerous
and deftrudtive to the perfons, lives, and
properties of mankind -, and ftands as a me-
lancholy proof of the afcendency which
priejlcraft and fuperflition are capable of
gaining over the human mind, when crea-
tures,
[ i76 }
Cent, tures, endowed with reafon, could fo IcCc
__._!_ all fenfe o$ felf -preformation, as not to arife
with one confent, zni fir angle it in its birth.
But the comparatively petty tyranny of
ecclefiafiical courts, which, from the days
of Confiantine, had been gradually fubju-
gating the underftandings of men, more
and more, under the affumed and ungodly
power of churchmen, had paved the way ;
and therefore we are told by Du Pin—
Cent. xiii. p. 154. Eng. tranf.— *•
" The Pope and the Prelates' (he might
have added the Devil, and made it a fort of
triumvirate J " perceiving that the former"
[i. e. thofe notorious heretics the AWigenfes\
<c contemned the fpiritual power, and that
" excommunication, and the other ecclejiafti*
" cal penalties, were fo far from reducing
iC them, that they rendered them the more
" infolent, and put them upon fifing vio-
c< knee9' [i.e. defending themielves when
they were moft inhumanly and unjuftly
attacked, and ftanding for their lives and
properties] " were of opinion, that it was
" lawful to make life of force, to fee whe-
" ther thofe who were not reclaimed out of
" a fenfe to their fa hat ion, might be fo by
" the fear of puniflments, and even of tern*
" parol death.
66 There had already been feveral in-
" fiances of heretics condemned to fines,
" banijhments, punijhments, and even to
" death itielf; but there had never yet been
M any
t *77 1
" any war proclaimed againft them, nor Cent.
u any croifado preached up for the extir- xni-
" patio?i of them. InnoceJit III. was the
t€ firjl who proclaimed fuch a war againft
" the Albigenfes and Waldenfes, and againft
" Raymond, count of Thouloufe, their ^ra-
<c t eel or. War might fubdue the /^Wx,
<c and reduce whole bodies of people; but
<c it was not capable of altering the fenti-
" ments of particular perfons, or of hin-
<c dering them from teaching their doc-
" trines Jecretly.
" Whereupon the Pope thought it ad-
c* vifeable to fet up a tribunal of fuch per-
l€ fons, whofe bujinefs it mould be to make
" enquiry after heretics, and to draw up
" their procejfes. For this purpofe, he
" made choice of the Dominican and Fran-
" cifcan fryars, who were newly eftablifh-
" edj to whom he gave commiffion to
" make exact enquiry after heretics, and to
" draw up informations againft them : and,
" from hence, this tribunal was called The
" Inquisition.
11 By degrees the authority of thofe in*
" quiftors increafed ; and whereas, at the
" lirft, they only drew up the procefs of
" heretics, and foiicited the ordinary judges
" to condemn them, they afterwards had
<c power granted them of trying the crime
t€ of herefy conjointly with the bifljops.
" The emperor Frederic II. approved
" of this tribunal, took the in qui fit or s' into
Vol. III. N " his
t 178 3
Cent. " his protection, and attributed to the ec~
XIIL " clefiafiics the taking cognizance of the
" crime of ^r^/j/ ; leaving only to the fe-
" cular judges, the power of inflicting the
" punifhment of death on thofe who were
" condemned.
" This tribunal of the Inquisition
u wTas at firft fet up at Thouloufe, and in
" the other cities of Languedoc, where the
herefy of the Albigenfes and Waldenfes
had the deepeji rodting. The Popes like-
wife fet it up in Italy, from whence it
palled, a long time after, into Spain and
" Portugal; but it was banifhed France,
<( and could never be introduced into Ger-
many."
iC
<c
a
Cent. CENTURY XIV.
XIV.
Council of Compeigne, anno 1304.
Can. 1. Excommunicate perfons, and fuch
as have contracted clandejiine marriages,
with all perfons that procured them, or
were pfefent at them, (hall not be admit-
ted to the divine fervice of the church, nor
allowed Chrijiian burial.
Council of Presburg, anno 1309.
Renews the decretal of Pope Benedict XI.
againft fuch clergymen as keep concubines,
and deprives fuch as are beneficed, of a
fourth part of their benefice, if they obferve
it not.
Council
[ *79 ]
Council of Colen, anno 1-210. Cent
XIV
Can. 9. Confirms the punifhments on — a
vlerks that keep concubines.
Can. 10. Forbids that clergymen mould
do public penance.
Can. 22. None fhall be prefent at clan-
dejiine marriages, but the banns of all mar-
riages fhall be pub lifted.
Council of Ravenna, anno 1 3 1 1 *
Can. 19. That the banns of marriages
fliall be publifhed, that the curates may-
know whether there be no impediments.
Marriages fliall not be celebrated from the
firft Sunday in Advent, till after the offaves
of the Epiphany — from Septuagefima Sunday,
till the oBaves of Eajler — from the day be-
fore the Afcenjion, to the offaves of Pente-
cojl.
Council of Nogarol, anno 1315.
Can. 2. Declares the children of fuch
as have contributed to lay taxes upon the
clergy ', incapable of receiving holy orders to
the fourth generation, and deprives their fa-
mily of Chri/iian burial.
Coimcii of Valladolid, anno 1322. — •
Of Toledo, anno 1323.
Can. 6. Forbids all clergymen to be pre-
fent at the marriages of their children and..
nephews.
N 2 Can.
»
[ i8o ]
^?*J* Can. 7. Againft clergymen who keep
- concubines.
Anno 1324. Can. 20. A clergyman fhall
not go out at night without a candle.
— iV. J3. This muit be to prevent deeds of
darknefs.
Council of Sen lis, anno 1326*
Can. 6. Forbids clandejline marriages.
Council of Alcala, or Complutum,
anno 1326.
Can. 2. Againft clergymen who keep
concubines openly.
Council of Narbonne, anno 1374-
Can. 22. Againft clandeftine marriages.
Council of Palenza, anno 1388.
Can. 3. Married clerks to wear the cle-
rical crown and tonfure, if they will enjoy
the privileges of their priejlhood.
Can. 7. Againft adulterers , and fuch as
keep concubines publicly.
England.
Council at London, anno 1328.
Can. 8. Marriages {hall not be folem-
nized without the publication of banns.
Council
[ i8i ]
Council of Lambeth, anno \\\o. Cent.
XIV.
Can. 5. Priefls fliall not celebrate mar-
riages, which are clandejline , or without
publication of banns.
Council of York, anno 1367.
Can 9. Againft clandeftine marriages,
and fuch as are without publication of banns.
See Thelypb. vol. ii. p. 147, n. 2d edit.
Lollards.
The fed: of the Lollards fpread through-
out Germany, and had for their leader Wal-
ter Lollard, who began to difperfe his er-
rors about 1 31 5. Du Pins charge againft
them confifts of many particulars— among
the reft — that they defpifed the facraments
of the church (i. e. Jive of Peter Lombard's
feven, of which one was marriage by priejls )
and derided her ceremonies and her conjlitu-
tions — pbferved not the jajls of the church,
nor its abjlinences, and acknowledged not
the inter cejjion of faints. Trithemius fays,
that Bohemia and Aufiria were infected with
them, that there were above 24,000 pen-
fons in Germany who held thefe errors , and
that the greater part defended them with
objlinacy, even unto death*
• N. B. Error and herefy are two ecclefaf
ticalfcare-crowsy and fignify, ufually, any
thing which the ruling powers chufe to
call by thofe names. Thefe, with the
N 3 wor4
[ i8a ]
Cent, word fchifm, have done fpecial fervice in
,XIV- their day. See Index to Thelyph. vol. ii.
tjt. Lollards.
Cent. C E N T U R Y XV.
XV.
Thomas Waldensts.
So called from being born at Walden in
Ejfex. Studied at Oxford. Was chofen
confefjor to Henry V. King of England,
with whom he went to France, and died
at Roan, November 3, 1430.
This learned and famous Doctor ftoutly
oppofed the errors of Wickliffe. He wrote
a great book — intitled — " A DoBrinalc of
f* the Antiquities of the Faith of the Cat ho -
" lie Church" againft the Wickliffites and
Hufjites, divided into three tomes. In
torn. 2. he lays down the doctrine of the
church, about the (feven)facraments — proves
the real prefence, and tranfubflantiation. On
the facrament of orders he proves — that the
celibacy of the clergy is according to the
fpirit and ge?iius of the holy fcripture, and
agreeable to the practice of the antient
church.
On marriage. — He fhews that thisficra-
ment may fubfift between perfons that ob-
serve continence — that it ought to be con-
tracted according to the forms prefcribed *by
the church — and with the benediction of the
priejl-, and diftinguifhes between marriages
which are lawful and which are unlawful.
This
[ i83 ]
This book is faid to be the fountain from Cent
whence many writers of controverfy, fince,
have drawn their arguments againft here-
tics of later times.
Alphonsus Tostatus, Bimopof Avila,
A mod voluminous writer. — He left
behind him twenty-feven volumes folio. He
wrote a book againft Concubinary Priejls —
A Treatife of Five Laws — of the Law of
Nature — of the Law of Mofes — of the
Law of Pagans — of thofe of Mahomet—
and of the * Laws of Chrijiians.
He died anno 1454* aged 40 years, and
was interred in the church of Avila, with
this epitaph.
HicJIupor eji mundi qui fcibile difcutit omne.
r. e.
Here is the wonder of the world, the difcuffer of
all that is knowable,
JEgidius Carlerius, Dean of
Cambray,
Wrote many learned treatifes ; among
others — a Treatife on the perpetual Virgi-
nity of the Virgin Mary — againft the Op-
pofers of Images — of the Celibacy of Eccle-
Jiajlics — and of the Ecclefafical Hierarchy.
* By this it fhould feem, that " the law s of Chrif-
" tians" were fuppofed to be as diftincl: from the
?• law of Mofes" as from the " law of Mahomet I"
This is audax Jap^ti genus with a v/itnefs ! — See
before, p. 68, n. After all, what were ttiefe " laws
*' of Chrijiians" but the arbitrary impofitions of fa-
thers, popes, councils, &c. on the reft gf mankind ?
N 4 Couu-*
XV.
[ 1 84 3
Cent. Council of Oxford, anno 1408.
XV* Can. 4. Nothing fhall be taught about
the Jacraments, but what is agreeable to the
do Brine of the church.
This council, which was held under
Thomas Arundel, archbiihop of Canterbury ,
made thirteen regulations, to put a flop
to the progrefs of JVickliff's errors.
Council of Saltzburg, anno 1420.
Can. 6. Excludes bajlards from the
order of the clergy \
Council of Collen, anno 1423.
Can. 1. Againft concubinary clergymen.
Can. 8. Concerns public concubinaries.
Council of Paris, anno 1429.
John of Nanton, archbifhop of Sens,
forbad the licences difpenfing with the banns
of matrimony to be granted eafily. — With
us they are eafily granted to all who can af-
ford to pay for them.
N. B. There was a council held at
Bourgesy anno 1438, but as Du Pin does
not mention it in its place, the reader will
find it, as in Du Pin, under the next cen~
tury, art. 1.
Council of Angers, anno 1448.
Can. 12. Forbids clandejline marriages.
Council of Toledo, anno 1473.
Can. 16. Forbids to celebrate marriage
at
[ i85 ]
at any other time than what is permitted Cent,
by the laws of the church, and condemns' x^*
thofe clergy to be fined, who give the nup-
tial blejjing at the times forbidden. See
.canon 62 of the church of England.
Can. 17, Againft clandejline marriages.
Council of Sens, anno 1485.
The archbifhop of Sens aflembled a fy-
nod at Sens, wherein he confirmed the
conflitutions made in a fynod held twenty-
five years before, for the celebration of mar-
riages.
One of the errors imputed to Wickliff,
was, his faying, " that the caufes of di-
" vorce, on account of confanguinity and
" affinity, as eftablifhed by the church,
" are human conflitutions, and ground-
" lefsr
One Lailier, a licentiate in theology at
Paris, was feverely perfecuted, for faying,
" 1. You ought to keep the commands of
" God and His apojlles ; and, as to the
t% commands of the bi/Jpops, they are no
" better than chaff, for they have de-
" ftroyed the church by their reveries.
" 2. Saying St. Francis was rather in hell
" than in heaven. 3. I am not bound to
u believe a man is a faint becaufe he is
u canonized, iince he is canonized for mo-
" ney, and none are canonized but thofe
*c who give fomething for it. 4. If a
ff priejl marry clandejlinely, and come to
*f me
[ i36 ]
Cent. " me and confefs it, I would not enjoin
xv- u him penance. 5. The priefts of the
u eajieni church do not fin in marrying,.
" and I believe that neither fhould weyfe
" in the wefiern church, if we fhould
" marry. 6. 400 years ago the priejis
u were forbidden to marry, by a Pope or a
cc butterfly — [D'un pape ou un papillon] —
<c I don't know whether he could do it.
*' 7. I would give two blancs to him, that
" will produce any paffage in fcripture,
<c whereby we are obliged to fail: in
" Lent."
The faculty condemned thefe propofi-
tions as heretical, erroneous , fchlfmatical,
raflo, &c; for which Lailier was excommu-
nicated, and would probably have fared
much wofje> if the poor man had not been
put into the hands of an inquifitor and a
bi/Jjop, who frightened him into a recanta-
tion.
This century was difgraced with the
burning of Sir "John Oldcajlle, John Hufs,
jferome of Prague, and other champions
for the religion of the Bible, as heretics —
hereby giving a deadly -proof of the fad
confequences to mankind, when the eccle-
fiaftical and fecular powers unite, for the
maintenance of error and fuperjiition, and
of courfe to deftroy thofe who dare to dif-
cover and oppofe them.
CEN-
[ i87 3
CENTURY XVI. Cent.
XVI.
We are now coming to the moft re-
markable period in all the annals of Europe.
In Germany Luther rifes, fees the papacy
difowned in Saxony, Brandenburgh, HeJJe,
Pomerania, the greateft part of the terri-
tories that belong to the houfe of Lunen-
burg, and moft of the free cities. In Swe-
den and Denmark his doctrine is abfolutely
and quietly fettled.
In England, Henry VIII. takes away
the Pope's power, pulls down mona/leries,
and fcatters the fworn defenders of the
papal hierarchy. His fon Edward VI.
builds upon his foundation, and goes on
with that reformation which his father had
begun. All this was firft occafioned by
the preaching of Luther, a private monk,
whom his enemies would have crujhed
with an high hand, and defpifed till it was
too late.
Having feen, during a long fucceffion
of ages, the church of Pome gradually
riling into its plenitude of power — all mat-
ters relative to marriage taken into the
hands of men, and regulated as they
thought moft conducive to the advance-
ment of ecclefiajlical inter ejl and authority ;
infomuch that God's word was entirely
abolifhed, as having any fhare in the laws
which were made concerning it — one
might
[ i88 ]
Cent, might expecl to find, that the reformation.
XVI- would have totally changed the face of
things, in this refpect — that marriage would
have been reftored to its antient fmplicity,
and, inftead of being fuffered to remain
on that papijiical plan, where Popes, coun-
cils, and fathers had placed it, and as our
reformers found it, we fhould have {ten
the Bible made the only rule of faith, in
this refpecl, as in others, perhaps of in-
ferior confequence to the prefent and eter-
nal interefts of mankind. — Whether we
have reafon to complain of difappointment7
will appear in the fequel.
Council of Bourges, anno 1438.
Referred to by Du Pin, Cent. XVI. c. i,
Art. 20. Againft fuch clergymen as kept
concubines publicly. It deprives them of
the profits of their benefices, and declares
them incapable of being promoted to any
honours, dignities, and benefices, with-
out a dispensation from their supe-
riors ; and if they relapfe after fuch dis-
pensation, they Ihall be out of hope of
ever having another.
It alfo orders how fuch fuperiors fhall
be proceeded againft, who are not careful
to punifh them : and as to thofe who
ought to be depofed by the Pope, the
provincial councils or their fuperiors may
inform
[ >89 ]
inform againft them, or fend informations Cent.
to the holy fee. XVL
It is declared, that a perfon who keeps
concubines publicly, is not only he that is fo
declared by a fentence of law, or by his
own confeffion made judicially, or by the
notoriety of the fa&, which cannot be
concealed ; but he that keeps a fufpicious,
or infamous woman in his houfe, and,
being admonifhed by his fuperior, doth
not put her away. The council alfo de-
crees the punishment of thofe ecclejiajlical
judges, who (hall commute with thofe that
keep concubines, or that fuffer, or neglect to
punifh them. It enjoins fuperiors to force
their inferiors to caft off their concubines, and
forbids fecular judges, yea, kings them-
selves, to hinder the proceedings of ecclefi-
qftical judges againft them. It alfo advifes
the laity to marry, and notlive in concubinage.
N. B. Concubinage brought in no grift
to the Popes mill — for by concubinage we
are to underftand cohabitation, indepen-
dently of prieftly ceremony ; which coha-
bitation, in procefs of time, grewr into a
mortal Jin , though fuch concubinary pa-
rents, as they were called, might get their
marriage ratified, and their ifiue legitimated,
by a proper fum of money, and attending
while a prieft performed the mafs, or of-
fice of matrimony . See Reynold's Hiftorical
Eflay, p. 71. See Thelyph. vol. ii. 155 — 6,
ift edit, p. 148, 2d edit.
In
i 190 1
xv?'* ^n &ort> the ecclejiajlical powers hac£
L. now got full pofllllion of the ordinance of
marriage, it was now numbered among
the facraments , its nullity , except admi-
nistered according to the rites and ceremo^
nies of the church, inculcated; and we
find its " ejfence made to confift, in the
" contract and in the facrament, not in one
" without the other. This was faid to
" be the opinion of councils, fathers, and
€C divines, and the moft judicious of the ca-
" nonifts" See Du Piny cent. xvi. p. 143.
Eng, Trarif. foL
From hence arofe the doftrine — " No
<e priejl no marriage' — if no marriage no ob-
ligation— if no obligation, no fecurity what-
ever to thefeduced: — hence was derived that
inundation of whoredom and projlitution,
which has been, is, and will be, the difgrace
and curfe of this, and every other Chrijlian
country, where this Popi/h lye is adopted ;
which is fo bare-faced, as not to dare to
appeal to a fingle text of fcripture for its
defence and fapport.
On their part, the lawyers defined mar-
riage to be " a lawful and perpetual union
" of man and wife, in order to the pro-
" creation of children, which includes a
"* partnership of life and goods/'
This definition looks fairly, but the
grafs which conceals the fnake is in the
word lawful; and on due examination we
fhall find, that the civil and ecclefiaftical
2 laws,
[ W ]
laws, which, from rhe days of Conjlantine, Cent.
were entering into an alliance for the fup- XVI.
port of church power, againft the natural
rights and liberties of mankind, both
agreed to define that to be lawful, which
was made fo by the legiflative contrivances
of human power and policy.
What is lawful according to the fcrip-
ture, and in God's fight, would have been
a dangerous queftion to their whole fyftem,
and mufl have laid their Popes, councils,
divines, canonijls, and cafuijls, under the
mod unfurmountable difficulties to main-
tain their plan. They feem to have feared
and dreaded the teftimony of the pure
fcripture, as a thief would dread the tefli-
mojiy of a witnefs that could hang him. —
They feldom mention that of the holy
fcripture, but they couple it with tradition
and the fathers ; which two lafi they intro-
duce, as the people in Bengal are faid to
introduce their interpreters before the Eu-
ropean judges, in order to miflead them by
falfe interpretations of what the witneffes
depofe.
As for this country — we cannot eafiJy
forget can. 4. of the council of Oxford,
anno 1408, by which it was decreed, that
" nothing fhall be taught about the facra-
" ments, but what is agreeable to the doc-
" trine of the church" Here was a flop
put to all enquiry upon the fubjecT:, on
the footing of divine revelation ; and thus
the
( J92 ]
Cent, the man of fin placed himfelf in the temple of
God, exalting himfelf above all that is called
God, or rworflnpped. See 2 Theff. ii. 4.
Martin Luther.
At length, Martin Luther arofe — He
opened his Bible — by the light of this, he
enabled numbers to fee, as he did himfelf,
the monftrous iniquity, that, for fo many
ages* had been deceiving the Chrijlian
world. He had, at firft, in a manner, all
the world againft him, and he was perfecuted
with all the malice that could be poured
out upon him. He was an inftrument,
every way fitted for the work he had to do
— vehemence of temper — unfhaken courage
— invincible refolution — were in his com-
pofition — thefe, with truth on his fide,
proved too hard for all the efforts of, what
was then called legal authority ; — the Pope
—the Emperor, with other kings and
princes of the earth, in vain oppofed ; he
fairly fet them at defiance, and, in the
face of difficulty, danger, and, as it were,
of death itfelf, was the great inftrument,
in the hands of Providence, to break off
the yoke of papal power, and to loofe
the bands of ignorance, error, and J up er-
Jlition, from the necks of many coun-
tries.
He was wonderfully preferved, from
the time when he published his firft thefis
againft indulgences at Wittemberg, anno
5 lS*7>
[ ^93 1
1 5 17, 'till his death, which happened at Cent.
IJleben, anno 1546, a fpace of 29 years. XVI.
It would be befide my prefent purpofe,
to enter farther into LufAer's hiftory,
than is neceffary to elucidate the fubje&s
of this book; bin we may learn this ufe-
ful leflbii from it— that intrepidity in the
caufe of truth, however offenfive to them
that live in error, and to thofe who chufe
their own delufion to believe a lye (fee 2 Pet.
ii. 18. and 2 ThefT. ii. 11.) is not to de-
fpair of meeting with fuccefs in the end.
Three of Luther 's noble and fcriptural
poiitions, with refpecT: to marriage, which
were cenfured by the divines at Paris, held
at the Mathurins, anno 1521, were as follow :
1 . That * matrimony is not &facra?nent of
Christ's inftitution, but invented by
men." cc 2. That the union between
the man and woman ought to hold, al-
though it be made contrary to human
laws." " 3. That the priefts ought to
approve all marriages contracted againft
the ecclefiajiical laws, with which the
Popes can difpenfe, except the mar-
riages of thofe that are exprefsly for-
bidden in fcripture."
All the doctors in the affembly deter-
mined Luther 's doclrine " to be proper
* Meaning, doubtlefs, that execrable fares, which
the priefts had been a&ing fince the days of Inno-
cent III. and which was now called — " The ^orm
ct OF THE SACRAMENT."
Vol. III. O " only
[ 194 1
Cent. Ci only to deceive Jimple people — injurious
XVL cc to all the doctors — derogatory from the
" power of the churchy and hierarchical
t€ order — openly fchifmatical — contrary
" to the Icripture, whofe fenfe it cor-
" rupts — blafphemous againft the Holy
" Spirit- — pernicious to the Chrijlian com-
:c monwealth— and lo it ought to be fup-
s* preffed, the writings which contain it
" to be burnt, and the author forced, by
(< all lawful means, to recant — for that
'* all his doctrine contained deteftable errors
" both in faith and manners"
Never was man who experienced more
vbufe than M. Luther. — The Popijh rulers
faw, very plainly, that the doctrines which
he had let forth in his writings, were too
well founded on the authority of the fcrip-
i lire, to be lhaken by fair and plain argu-
■?A\t. They therefore eflayed two modes
of refutation, which, backed by the credit
they themfelves were in with the ignorant
vulgar, they imagined would anfwer the
purpoie which they defpaired of from fair
argument.
One of thefe was, devifing fcandalous
and opprobrious terms for the writings
themfelves, which implied great mifchiefs
to the church from the confequences of
Luther 's " damnable and antichriftian
" errors," as they called the doctrines
which he fet forth.
The other was, raking together all the
perfonal
[ m i
perfonal fcandal they could, in order to Cent.
Vilify and blacken the author in the efti- XVI-
mation of mankind, and thus fhake the
credit of his writings in the public opi-
nion.— In what manner this is fet forth in
the canon of St. Victor, may be feen in
the Gen. Dicl. Hi/i. & Crit. Art. Lu-
ther. See before vol. ii. 164, n. ift editi
— 154, h. 2d edit.
However powerful fuch methods as thefe
may prove, in vulgar, weak* low, ignorant,
and malicious minds, yet what do they
amount to in the eyes of difpaffionate,
moderate, and confederate men ? Thefe will
always reflect, that the merit or demerit of
any writing* is to be demonftrated by it-
felf\ and to be gathered by a fober, atten-
tive, unprejudiced* and deliberate perufal
of it ,• not from this or that epithet \ which
malice, prejudice, and ignorance may have
bellowed upon it ; this, perhaps, from
mere report of thofe who have never red a
line of the book in queftion, and who owe*
very probably, their opinions to the re-
ports of others as ignorant as themfelves.
The meaneft, and loweft, and moft wick-
ed of all* is, the Jecond experiment* which
was tried on Luther s perfonal character.
This doubtlefs had its effect with many
empty and ignorant profeffors, who had
not recollection enough to make them re-
flect on its total inconclujivenefs, with re-
fpect to the truth or falJkoodx>\ f the doctrines
O 2 which
[ '96 3
Cent, which Lather had advanced. His attack
XVI- on the villainous traffic of indulgences — on
the doctrine of purgatory — the worihip of
the Virgin Mary and the faints — the merit
of works — the papiftical fchemes of celibacy
and matrimony — &c. — had little to do with
all they could fay againft Luther himfelf.
The truth or falihood of what he faid, did
not in the leaft depend on the man, but
on the word of God, on which he relied
the whole evidence of what he publifhed.
Luther full well knew the truth of
thefe obfervations in his own mind,
and therefore all that was faid againft him
and his writings, was treated with deferved
contempt.
He ftill had a friend in the 'Elector of
Saxony, who, forefeeing that the Emperor
was about to make a bloody edict againft
Luther, and that he could protect him
no longer after that, nor fuffer him in his
countries, without bringing trouble upon
himfelf from the Emperor, refolved to
.have him taken, and put into a caflle,
where he might lie concealed, and no man
know where he was ; which was accord-
ingly done. For when Luther went to
Eyfenac, May 3, and was paffing through
a foreft in his way to Wittemberg, he was
fet upon by fome horfemen in difguile,
who threw him down, and took him, as
it were by force, to carry him into the
caftle
[ 197 1
cajile at Wittemberg, where he lay concealed Cent.
nine months. 1
While Luther was fhut up in his cajile,
which he called his hermitage and his Pat-
mos, he compofed feveral books, to main-
tain his opinions, and to deftroy the difci-
pline of the church, threatening the Pope and
the bifiops, if they did not change their
cuftoms, after they were warned by his
writings, God would permit others to
oblige them to it.
It is not to be wondered at (fays Du
Pin] that Luther 's doclrine, which was
fo favourable to concupifcence, mould meet
with many followers — that the monks left
the cloyfters, and difpenfed with the ob-
fervation of their vows ; that the priejis
marriedy and the people were pleafed, to
fee themfelves difcharged of all that was
penal by the laws of the church, as fajling,
confejjion, penance, &c. and embraced gree-
dily thefe novelties : Carolojladius was one
of the firft, that gave the priejis an ex-
ample of marrying. Jujlus Jonas, pro-
voft of Wittemburg, and Bernard Veltkirck,
paftor of Kenbergen, did the fame, as alio
John Buginhagius, who had been a fchool-
mafter at Treptow in Pomerania, but then
fettled at Wittemburg. Veltkirck was ac-
cufed of the matter before the ElecJor of
Mentz, Archbijhop of Magdeburgh, and
Veltkirck made an apology to him, to
jufiify what he had done.
Q 3 Luther
[ 198 ]
Cent.. Luther fcrupled net to defend his doo
l_ trines in many writings, in which he fe-
verely attacked the Pope and the bifoops ;
he accufes the latter of ignorance, de-
bauchery, and tyra?iny — of being enemies
to the go/pel, and the truth — of being ido-
laters, becaufe they followed the traditions
of men, and wrorfhipped their idol the
Pope* He faid that monajieries, cathedral
and collegiate churches, are the gates of hell \
and/hops * qfujdefs ceremonies. He declaims
againft celibacy and vows — " hiding his
" malignity (lays Du Pin) under an ap-
U pearance of zeal for the truth, and cit-
" ing feveral texts of fcripture to mew,
" that the doctrine and behaviour of the
" bifhops of his time, were oppofite to
*€ thofe which 5/. Paul requires in a bi-
" flop. Laftly, he fays his defign is to
" perform the office of a public herald,
" to make it manifeft every where, that
" the bifloopSy which govern the greateft
€c part of the world, are not of God's ap-
u pointment, but by the delufion of Sa-
*' tan, and by error and traditions of men,
* It would have reflected great honour on the re-
formation, if all thefe Jbops had been Jlmt up entirely,
and their revenues, which are bnmenfe, been properly
appropriated to the poor parochial clergy ; the indi-
gence of many of thefe is a fcandal to the nation%
but hardly a greater, than, that others have to fay —
Nos numerus fumus, fruges cenfumere nati. H o R .
But we, mere cyphers in the book of life,
Born to confume the fruits of earth. Francis.
" and,
[ i99 ]
" and, in one word, the nuncios and vicars Cent.
" of the dcviir XVI-
There lived in thefixth century one G/7-
/tar, furnamed the /Fjjfc, who was made ab-
bot of Bangor ; this man was born in Eng-
land, unno 520, and by his writings we find,
that, from his time to Luther 's, churchmen
were no changelings ; for of the clergy of
England Gildas writes — " England has
" bijhops enough, but they are zixhzr fools,
" or minijiers to the pafiions of the great,
" or unchafte men — it has clergy enough,
" but, for the moft part, they have only
" the name of pajiors, and are, at the bot-
tc torn, wolves prepared to kill the fouls
" of their Jheep ; they never think of do-
u inS g00(i *° trie people, but 0^/y how to
" y?// //6^/r ^w» bellies. — They feek for
" churches, but it is only out of a defire of
" filthy gain — they teach the people, but
M at the fame time they give them bad ex-
" amples — they very feldom offer facrifice,
" and never go to the altar with a clean
" heart — they flatter the people in their
M crimes, and feek only to fatisfy their
" paffions — they very feldom fpeak the
" truth — they defpife the poor, and make
" court to riches — they canvafs for and
" purchafe ecclefiajlical offices, &c. He
" concludes with a prayer to God, to
<f preferve the fmall number of good paf-
M tors that was left." See Du Pin, cent. 6.
tit. Gildas,
O 4 Luther's
[ 200 ]
Cent. Luther § writings gave great offence,
. 1_ and raifed up many anjwerers -, among the
reft he had a royal adverfary, Henry VIII.
King of England, who, for the book which
he wrote againft Luther, was honoured by
the Pope with the title of defender of the
faith, which has ever fince been given to
our kings.
However, nothing could daunt Luther %
truly heroical fpirit ; he found, that all
the calumny and abufe from his enemies,
and with which they loaded him in their
attacks upon his writings, tended to little
elfe than to expofe the nakednefs of their
caufe, and but badly fupplied the place
of rational and fcriptural arguments, he
therefore was no more troubled at them,
than at the whittling of the wind. — His
pen was kept constantly at work : and in
anno 1522 the Pope fent his nuncio Chere-
gatus to the diet of the empire, held at Nu-
remburg, to declare, that though he was
M comforted to think that Luther s doc-
" trine was lb vifibly bad, that he could
" not believe it would be tokrated, yet
" this poifonous plant had taken root — that
" it appeared itrange, that fo large and re-
" ligious a nation as Germany, could be
" feduced, in fo great a part of it, by a
" wretched fryar, who had apoftatized from,
" and left the way, which our Lord, the
€t apojiles, martyrs, and fo many illuf-
" trious perfons for doctrine and ho/inefs,
« and
[ 201 ]
V and laftly, their anceflors, had followed Cent,
" to that very time — that Luther ftill con- XVI.
" tinued to teach and put out books full of *
" errors — that he takes the fame methods
" to feduce the people that Mahomet ufed;
" for, as Mahomet allowed men to havey?-
" vera/ wives, and divorce them when
" they pleafed, fo Luther, to draw monks,
" nuns, and lafcivious priefts to him, he
" allowed them to marry.
" That having represented thefe things
" to them, he exhorted the princes, pre-
lf lates, and people, to roufe up themfelves
;' to oppofe the injuries which the Lu-
" therans do to God and to religion — that
{C the Pope's fentence and the Emperor s
u edict mould be executed — that Luther
mould not be allowed to defend what he
" hath taught about matters of faith, be-
*' caufe moft of the truths which he op-
" pofeth, have been determined by general
" councils, and fuch things ought never to
" be called in queftion, as have been once
" approved by thofe councils, and all the
(t church:9— N. B.
The diet anfwered the Pope very refpect-
fully — at the fame time giving him to un-
derftand, that they did not chufe to enter
upon the violent meafures, with refpect to
the Emperor s edict and the Pope s fentence
againft Luther, which his holinefs had re-
commended— " As to the advices which
M the Pope had defired, that, they did
" not
(.-
Cent.
XVI.
[ 202 ]
" not mean to treat only about the bu-
" finefs of Luther, but alfo concerning
" the extirpation of many other errors,
" abufes, and vices, rooted by cujlom and
" time, and maintained by the ignorance
" of fome, and malice of others.
They then fpeak of taking away the li-
berty of the prefs, that " Luther, and his
followers, might not write, print, or
put any thing out in public — that the
magi/lrates fhould appoint men, of pro-
bity and learning, to licenfe new books,
and without this, no new books fhould
be publiJJoed; and thus things would be
kept quiet, till a free council could be
called, with confent of the Emperor, in
fome convenient place in Germany.
" As to the priefts which are married,
and the monks who have left their con-
vents, they fhould be punifhed by their
ordinaries according to the canons, by
deprivation of their benefices, or the
like, fince the civil laws had declared
nothing againft them."
The Nuncio, in his reply, faid, " that
for the future, they fhould put in exe-
cution the decree of the council of La-
teran, by which it is forbidden to print
any book about matters of religion, that
had not been allowed by the ordinary "
About the matter of married priefts, he
faid — " the anfwer of the diet did not dif-
« pleafe him, if it had not this claufe at
« the
[ 2o3 ]
fs the end, That the breakers of their vows, Cent.
" if they committed any crime, mould be XV
*' punifhed by the fecular magijlrates, pre-
" tending that it was contrary to the li-
" berties of the church, and that the
" judgment of fuch perfons belonged to
" the ecclejiajlical judges/'
After this the diet fent a memorial, of
*' an hundred grievances,1' to the Pope.
Some of which were, about conjlitutions —
they complained, that there was too great
a number of human conjlitutions, about
things which are neither commanded nor
forbidden by the commandments of God ;
among others, " the hindrances of kindred
*' and affinity, legal and fpiritual — about
" marriage, abflinence from meats, &c.
" which they difpenfed with for money;
f< by which means, they got great fums
" out of Germany, befides the Jcandals and
" other evils which this multitude of laws
M caufed."
They alfo complained of the incroach-
ments of ecclejiajlical judges, in laymen %
caufes, and the malverfations which they
committed in their judgments — of the ex-
actions of the clergy for the facraments,
and alfo for licences to keep a concubine. —
Alfo of the faculties given to the Pope's le-
gates and Nuncios to legitimate bajlards^
"&c. &c.
They told the Pope, that, <e if he gave
ft thern not fatisfadtion, they were re-
" folved
[ 204 ]
CJyT' " folved not to fuffer thefe charges, nor
1 " thofe of. indulgences, which freed men
€€ from punifoment for money > they would
u feek means to releafe themfelves from
" them."
This refolution of the diet of Nurem-
berg, was made into the form of an edicl,
and publifhed March 6, 1523.
Luther 's exhortations were loon followed
with effefts. The fame year Leonard Cop-
fen, a burgefs of Targaw, took away «/>*£
###.r, on a G02*/ Friday, among which was
Catherine Bora (whom Luther married two
years after) from the nunnery of Nimptfchen,
and carried them to Wittemberg. This
adlion (fays Du Pin) Luther dared to ex-
tol, in a book in the German language,
where he has the impudence to compare
that deliverance, to that of the fouls which
Christ delivered by his death.
Luther, defiring utterly to ruin the mo-
najlic orders, and mix them with the pub-
lic, made a kind of manifejlo in the German
tongue, which he in titled, " The Common
" Treafury ;" in which he affirms, that
there ought to be a treafury made out of all
the revenues of the monafteries, bijhoprics,
and chapters, and in general out of all ec-
ckfiajlical benefices, and be given partly to
the pajlors and preachers, and other parts to
different beneficial and charitable ufes.
Zuinglius made no lefs progrefs in Swit-
zerland, than Luther did in Saxony. He
taught
[ 2o5 ]
taught that marriage is allow.ed to all the Cekt<
world, and no man is obliged to make a XVI-
vow of chaftity, and that priejls are not at
all obliged to live unmarried. — That the
power which the Pope and bifldops afTumed
to themfelves, is a piece of pride, which
hath no foundation in the fcriptures. —
That the char after which the facraments
are faid to imprefs, is a modern invention,
of which the fcripture makes no men-
tion.
'John Faber, chief vicar of the bifldop of
Confiance, who oppofed Ziiinglins at the
conference of Zurich, maintained, that
where a doctrine had long been fettled in
the church, and authorized by the practice
of all nations, fuch cuftoms ought not to be
abolijhed by any allegations out of the fcrip-
tures, or pretences that they are contrary to
them. — Zuinglius replied, that we ought
not to regard how long a thing has been,
or has not been in ufe ; but obferve only
whether it be agreeable to the truth, or
law of God : to which cuftom could not
be oppofed. — >N. B.
Auguft 23, 1522, Zuinglius prefented,
in his own name, and in the name of
many of his followers, a petition to the
bi/Jjop of ConJla?ice, to in treat him to allow 9
at leafl to tolerate, the marriage of priejls.
He wrote alfo a letter, againft fuch impedi-
ments of marriage, as were thought to be
made bv fpiritual affinity.
The
[ 206 ]
Cent. The Popes legate, not fatisfied with the
x decrees of the diet of Nuremberg, held an
aflembly at Ratijbon, with fome princes and
feveral bifldops, where it was decreed, that
there fhould be no alterations in the cele-
bration of the majs, adminijlration of the fa*
cr anient s, and other ceremonies of the church,
or in other antient ufagcs—\\\2\ the mar-
riages of monks and priejls fhould be hin-
dered, and thofe punijloed that fhould do the
contrary — that printers fhould not commit
any book to the prefs, till it had been ex*
amined and approved — that no prince fhould
entertain a Lutheran in his dominions —
that priejls, who keep concubines, fhall be
ieverely punifhed — that marriages fhall be
celebrated in a full congregation in the
church, unlefs there be a neceffity to afk
the biJhop\ confent, except in Lent, the lafl
weeks of Advent, at the feaft of Eajler,
Whitfuntide, and the Nativity, and their oc+
taves, and the Rogation days — that monks
and priejls which marry, fhall be proceeded
againit, and if the ordinaries neglect to do
it, the Pope fhall appoint judges to punifh
the guilty.
About this time arofe great troubles in
Germany, greatly owing to the difputes
and controversies among the Proteftants
themfelv.es. Still Lutheranifm increafed,
and fettled itfelf in feveral cities. The Elec-
tor of Saxony, the Landgrave of Hejfe, the
Duke of Brunfuick, profeffed it; the city
9 °f
[ 207 ]
of Strajburg received it ; and the Senate of Cent.
that city maintained the married clergy, in XVI.
oppofition to the bifiop. — In almoft all the
ftates of the Empire, Luther anifm was
preached, and gained many followers.
In the fame year 1525, Luther married
Katherine Bora, a perfon of quality, who
had been a nun, and was taken (as before is
mentioned) out of the nunnery of Nimpt-
jchen, in 1523 , he defended the fad:, with-
out blujhing, in the face of all the world,
and had the boldnefs to advife the archbifoop
of Mentz to do the like.
Diet of Augsburg, 1530.
The Emperor publifhed the decree of
the Diet, which ordered, " that the doc-
" trine of j unification by faith mould be
<c rejected — that the facr anient s of the
" church mould be prefer ved in the fame
•f number and manner as formerly — that
" the ceremonies and other ufages of the
" church mould be obferved — that married
Cl priejis and clerks mould be deprived of
" their benefices, unlefs they would leave
i( their wives. "
Henry VIII. King of England.
We muft now go back a little, in point of
time, in order briefly toftate the beginning
and progrefs of reformation in this country.
Henry VII. married his eldeft ion Ar-
thur, prince of IVahs, to Katherine the
daughter
Cest.
XVI.
[ io8 ]
daughter of Ferdinand, king of Arragon~
Nov. <4, 1 50 1. Arthur dying in a few
months after, it was promifed that Kathe-
rinc fhould be married to Henry duke of
York, the king's fecond Jon.
But becaufe this could not be done with-
out a difpenfation, Pope Julius II. was
fued to for one ; who granted it, by his
Bull, bearing date December ib, 1503,
wherein he recites — " That Katherine had
" been married to prince Arthur, and that
" perhaps this marriage was confum-
" mated — that neverthelefs, Arthur being
" dead, Henrv his brother and fhe defired
" to be married together; whereupon, to
*c preferve peace among catholic kings and
" princes, he difpenfed with the impedi?nent
** of confanguinity in Henry and Katherine,
u all ordinances and apojtolic conjlitutions
16 not wit hjl an ding ; he allowed them to
M marry, and, if they were already married,
** he confirmed it. "—See Lev. xviii. 16.
After this difpenfation, Henry, who was
ftill under age, was married to his brother s
wife. — See Tbelypb. vol. ii. ift edit. p. 76, n.
— p. 70, 2d edit, and p. 13* n.
'Tis not known upon what account his
father obliged him to enter a protcjlation
againft this marriage, June 2j, 1505, be-
fore Fox, billiop of IVinchejter ; " that,
" being of age, he now revoked the mar-
" riage, which he had made with his bro*
" tier's widow, that he thought it null, and
" WOuld
t 209 ]
" would have it legally dijjbhed" Never- Cent,
thelefs it remained ftill as it was. XVh
Henry VII. dying April 7, 1509, the
yoililg king caufed the validity of his mar-
riage to be examined by his council; and
Warham, archbifhop of Canterbury, was
hardly brought to approve it ; but the con-
trary opinion being the ftronger, the king
married Katherine publicly, June 2$, 1709.
This princefs was with child feveral times,
but either mi/carried, or the iffue lived but
a little while, except one daughter, Mary.
Henry lived with Katherine till 1525,
without any fcruple about his marriage,
for he did not think of the divorce till
1526. What moved him to begin is not
certainly known. He only pretended con-
Jcience. The diftafte which he took to Ka-
therine s infirmities did contribute to it,
but the love which he entertained for Anne
Holey n fixed his refolution more than all the
reft, to require a divorce from Katherine,
that he might marry Anne.
Cardinal Wolfey, out of revenge for fome
treatment he had received from the em-
peror Charles V. nephew of queen Kathe-
rine, refolved to make king Henry an irre-
concileable enemy to the emperor, con-
firmed Henry § fcruples about the lawful-
nefs of his marriage -, well knowing, that
as Katherine was filler of Joan of Arragon,
the mother of Charles V. it would be an
horrid affront, that would fall upon the
Vol. III. P whole
[ 210 ]
Cent, whole family, to have her defpoiled of her
XVI» quality of Queen, her daughter Mary there-
by declared illegitimate, and incapable of
inheriting the crown of England.
The whole affair may be feen in Du Pin,
and Burnet Hift. Ref. at a much greater
length than it is at all to my purpofe to
mention here. I would only obferve, that
after much chicanery and difputation,
among divines and cafuifts, in almoft all
the countries of Europe, the queftion was
decided again ft the poor Queen, and a fen-
tence of divorce pronounced by Cranmer,
archbifhop of Canterbury, as legate of the
Holy See, May 23, I 533. Five days after
which, king Henry s marriage with Anne
Boleyn was confirmed, £he came to London
in triumph, May 29, made a magnificent
entrance, and was proclaimed Queen on the
30th, and the King commanded all his fub-
jects not to give Katherine the name of
queen. — He alio caufed her to be impor*
tuned not to ftand on the validity/ of the
■marriage, but all in vain.
News being: carried to Rome, whither
Katherir.c had appealed, incenfed that court
again ft Cranmer', the Pope made all his
proceedings void, denouncing excommuni-
cation again ft the King and Anne Boleyn, if
they did not appear at Rome before the end
of September, or if they parted not before
that time.
Few
[ 211 ]
Few among the Proteftants favoured the Cent.
king's caufe, or approved of his divorce XVI
from Katherine. MelanBhon, and the other
Lutheran divines, held that the mar-
riage with her was valid. Oeclampadius,
Zuinglius, and Calvin, afferted the nullity
of the marriage, ' grounded on the prohi-
bition in Leviticus. Several books were
put out, for and againft the marriage of
Henry with Katherine, and the queftion was
hotly difputed between the divines and ca-
fuijls.
At Rome the affair was debated in a con-
fiftory, May 23, 1534* and of twenty- two
cardinals, nineteen were of opinion, that
the marriage of Katherine with Henry was
good, and the divorce null and void. — He
was enjoined to take her again for his wife,
and forbidden to continue his feparation
from her any longer.
This proceeding laid the foundation of
abolifhing the Pope's power in England,
and occafioned many acls of parliament for
that purpofe ; but Popery ftill remained,
and fome of its moft horrid cruelties placed
in the power of the king. They alfo fet-
tled the fucceffion of the crown upon the
children that fhould be born of Anne Bo-
leyn ; and the princefs Mary, the daughter
of Katherine, was excluded.
Anne Boleyn did not long enjoy her dig-
nity : the king, being enamoured with Jane
P 2 Seymour,
[ 212 ]
Cent. Seymour, found a means to get rid of his
L wife Anne, by accufing her of adultery ; for
which flie was condemned to death.
Before this fentence was executed, fhe
was forced to declare, before the archbifhop
of Canterbury, and the ecclejiajiical court,
that, before fhe married the king, there was
a promife or contract of marriage between
her and the lord Percy, who was then be-
come earl of Northumberland ; and, upon
this declaration, Cranmer paffed a fentence,
by which her marriage with the king was
declared null, and her daughter Elizabeth
declared illegitimate, as Mary the daughter
of Katherine had been. Anne was beheaded,
May 19, 1536.
The next day after her death, Henry
married Jane Seymour, with whom he was
paffionately in love. The princefs Mary was
received into favour, after acknowledging
in writing that the king was fupreme head
over the church of England, and that the
marriage of her mother was null and incef-
tuous.
In the following parliament a very fevere
law was made, anna 1536, againft thofe
who fhould acknowledge the power of the
Pope.
The convocation of the clergy agreed on
feveral matters, by which the Popifh doc-
trines were eftablifhed, as tranfubjlantiation,
' auricular confeffion, and that the ceremonies
are to be retained as good and commend-
able;
[ 2i3 ]
able; with many other matters of the like Cent.
fort. Thefe were all confirmed by the XVI-
king.
Neverthelefs he did not fpare the abbtes
and nunneries, but diflblved them all, and
$ feized their revenues.
In 1539 he caufed fix articles to be drawn
up, and to be eftablifhed by the parlia-
ment. One among which was, that it is
not lawful for thofe in holy orders to marry
— -the marriages of priejis declared void, and
thofe ordered to be punifhed with death
who fhould marry, as well as thofe who,
by preaching, writing, or open difcourfe,
fhould declare or maintain it lawful for
them fo to do.
Jane Seymour, the third wife of Henry,
dying in 1537, two ^ays a^ter ber delivery
of Edward (afterwards Edward VI.) the
king, by the advice of Cromwell, whom he
had made his vicegerent mfpiritual affairs,
and lord privy feal, and had lately created
earl of Ejfex, married Anne of Cleves ; but
the king took a diftaile to her, and, imme-
diately after his marriage, endeavoured to
break it. Poor Cromwell was difgraced — •
accufed of herefy, and other offences, for
which be was beheaded, July 28, 1540.
* I have been told, that the only one that efcaped,
was the little convent of St. Catherine's near the
Tower^ which ftill confifts of a Superior (now cal}e4
the Majler) and of Brothers and Sifters.
P 7 He
XVI.
[ 214 ]
Cent. He was no fooner condemned, than the
king fought to difiblve his marriage with
Anne of Cleves. The cau ( s alledged for
it were, that fhe had been before contract-
ed to the marquis of Lorrain — that the
king, having married her againft his incli-
nation, had never confummated the mar-
riage. Upon thefe reafons, the parliament
declared the marriage null, and Cranmer,
and the reft of the clergy, were of the fame
opinion, and fo fentence was given July
9th.
The queen confented to it, and remained
ever after in England. The king, foon after,
married Kaiherine Howard, whom he loved
pajjionatety.
The commijjioners, whom the king had ap-
pointed for eccle/iq/licahff^ivs, drew up a long
instruction, in which they owned all the
Catholic doc~lrines except the Popes fupremacy.
They regulated all the ceremonies and rites
then in ufe, according to the practice of
the primitive church. They alfo held free"
will, and the merit of good works.
Doff or Barnes, and fome others, having
preached againft thefe doctrines, were con-
demned to death as heretics. In fhort,
Henry punifhed with death, Lutherans, and
the defenders of the Pope's fupremacy,
alike.
Katherine Howard was difcovered to lead
a loofe life ; which being proved againft
her, (lie was beheaded, February 12, 1542.
King
[ 2i5 3
King Henrys fixth wife was Katberine Cent,
Parr, the widow of Nevil lord Latimer, XV1-
whom he married in July 1543. Though
fhe favoured the Protejlants, yet the king
did not flop the execution of the Luther-
ans, or Sacr anient arians. Henry to his
death continued in the fame judgment, as
to his religion, but would never return to
the church of Pome, and in this diipofi-
tion he died, January 27, 1547, being
fifty-fix years old, having reigned thirty-
feven years and nine months, and having
pafled many laws, which made him a Pope,
and the archbijhop of Canterbury, and the
reft of the bijhops and clergy in convocation,
fo many Popes under him.
Diet of Ratisbon, anno 1541.
Before we proceed any farther in the af-
fairs of religion in England, it will be ne-
ceffary for us to return to the Continent, in
order to acquaint ourfelves with thofe
fran factions, which may be faid to have had
fo great an effect with regard to religion in
general, and particularly afterwards in
England.
The diet of Ratijbon was attended by
the emperor in perfon, and by all the
princes of the empire, either in perfon or by
deputies. The Pope lent to it cardinal Con-
tar eraus, a man famous for wifdom and pro-
found learning.
P 4 At
[ 216 3
Gent. At this diet there was a conference ap-
XVI. pointed, between the Catholic and Protef-
r /#/?/ divines, nominated by the emperor for
this purpofe. He chofe for the Catholics —
yulius Pfugius, John Eckius, and John
Groppen :— And, for the Proteftants — Phi-
lip Melauclhon, Martin Bucer, and John
Pijlorius.
A book was delivered to the collocutors,
thought to be drawn up by Groppen , which
contained 22 articles.
Art. 15. Is about the facrament of mar-
riage, and tells us, " That it is appro-
" priated to Chrijlians ; that it is grounded
" upon the words of Christ, when the
" infeparable union pf male and female is
?- commanded, and the outward conjunc-
" tion of them is the element, and the tfcr-
<c tue confifts, in acknowledging that ma?i
" and wife are joined together by the au-
** thority of God, and have received a
t* gnz^ which makes their union lawful."
Art. 21. Concerns the ecckfiaftic difci-
pline of the clergy, and it is faid, " That
<c if the latter cayions, which obliged priefls
(€ to live umnarried, be retained, the an-
" tient csnfures againft priefls that keep
<c concubines, ought to be revived." Some
of the antient rules, concerning the conti-
nence of priefls, are here fet down.
Thefe, and others of the articles, were
objeded to by the Protefajits. The Popes
legate gave an anfwer which they did not
like ;
{ f}2 3
like; this provoked the Protejlants, dif- Cint.
pleafed the emperor and the Catholic princes; xv*\
but the legate faid, that the articles mould
be generally referved to the judgment qf
the Pope, and the Apojlolical See, in a coun-
cil, to which he remitted that bufinefs en-
tirely.
While the emperor and king of Fra?ice
were waiting for the calling of a general
council, they confulted the divines of the
Univerjity of' Louvain, which was one of the
moft famous in Europe, who drew up 32 ar-
ticles againft the innovators, Nov. 6, 1 544.
Art. 18. Marriage, lawfully contracted,
and confummated, among Chrijiians, cannot
be diffolved, though it happens to either
of them, who are fo joined together, that
they commit adultery, or become barren,
or be heretics.
Art. 19. It was never allowed to a
Chrijlian man to marry again after a di-
vorce, fo long as the woman from whom he
was parted be alive.
Art. 20. That marriages contracted
againft the canons, which have laid down
the invincible impediments, are null.
Art. 32. That it is good to make mo-
nastic and other vows, and that being made
they are obligatory before God.
The divines of Paris, by the kings or-
der, March 10, 1542, compofed 25 articles
of faith.
Art. 11. It is not to be doubted but
the
f 218 ]
Cent, the faints in heaven and earth work mi-
XVI- racles.
Art. 12. It is a pious thing, and agree-
able to God, to pray to the virgin Mary,
and to the faints, that they would be our
advocates and inter cefjbrs with God.
Art. 15. That if any one prays to the
virgin Mary, or to fome faint, rather than to
God, he doth not fin.
Art. 20. It is certain we ought to be-
lieve many things, which are not men-
tioned in fcripture> but received by the tra-
dition of the church.
Art. 25. That mona/lical vows of chajlityy
poverty, and perpetual obedience, oblige in
confeience.
That the conftitutions of the church
oblige in for 0 confeientice .
There were feveral provincial councils held
in France and Germany, before the council
of Trent, againft the new herefies.
Council of Bourges, anno 1523.
Can. 1, 3. The herefy of Luther having
been condemned by the holy fee, no perfon
ihall print, fell, or keep any books, in which
the faid herefy lhall be diffufed.
Can 12. Injoins the curates not to fuffer
certain ridiculous ceremonies any longer to
be ufed in the adminiflration of the facra-
ments of baptifm and marriage.
Can. 18. No fchoQl-mqjters ihall read
fuch
[ 2i9 ]
fuch books to their fcholars, as may make Cent.
them averfe to the ceremonies of the church. xv*-_
Council of the Province of Sens, held
;t Paris, anno 1528.
Can. 1 Is ab( at the unity and infalli-
bility of the cbu>ch~ It is there declared,
that it cannot fail into any error about faith
and manners-, and he that doth not depend
on its authority, both in doctrine and man-
ners, is worfe than an infidel.
Can. 3. He that reiifts the authority of
general councils, ought to be accounted an
enemy to the faith.
Can. 4. It belongs to the church to in-
terpret the fcriptures ; and thofe who do aot
follow the canons of the council of Carthage,
Innocent, and Gelajius, and refufe the fenfe
which the holy fathers have put upon them,
are fchifnatics and heretics.
Can. 5. Eftablifhes the neceffity and va-
lidity of traditions, and tells us, that fuch
things as are derived to us that way, ought
to be believed, and obferved, and whofoever
refufeth to accept any truth, for this reafon
only, " becaufe 'tis not clearly delivered to
" us in holy fcripture," ought to be efteemed
an heretic and fchifmatic.
Can. 6. Concerns the obedience due to
the conftituiions and canons of the church, and
condemns thofe that defpife them.
Can. 7. They are pronounced accurfed,.
who
[ 220 ]
Cent, who do not obferve the Lentfajl, and other
XVI- fa/fa* and times of abjlinences commanded
by the decrees of the church.
Can. 8. Numbers thofe among heretics,
who teach that priejis, deacons, and fub- dea-
cons, are not obliged to live a fmgle life, and
fo leave them at liberty to marry.
Can. 9. Agai rift thofe who count perpe-
tual vows unlawful, and efpecially monaf-
tical vows. They prove the obligation
of them, and order thofe to be punifhed
according to the canons, who fay that it is
lawful to break them .
Can. 10. Condemns fuch as lefTen the
number of facrament s, or deny that they
have a power to confer grace — that marrir
age is a true facrament, by which the per-
fons joined together receive a celejlial blef-
Laftly. All thofe that acknowledge not
the fevenjacrawents are to be efteemed here-
tics.
In another fat of canons — It is ordered,
that all ihall attend the parochial mafs on
Sundays, and inform the officers of the eccle-
fiaftical courts, of thofe who are abfent three
Sundays together.
Can. 39. Marriage, being a facrament,
ought to be received with reverence, and all
perfons fhall forbear laughter, and merry
talk, while the office is celebrating, and the
marriage-blefing is pronouncing — that the
perfons efpoufmg, fhall prepare themfelves
for
f 221 ]
for this facrament by f aji Hng and penance—* Ce^-
that none fhall be married for the future 1«
'till after fun-rifing, and not immediately
after midnight, as has been ufual; which has
been the occafion of many clandejline marri-
ages, from whence many very great fcan-
dais have arifen; and therefore all fuch as
contract ox favour them, are excommuni-
cated ipfofacJo.
Can. 40. No new miracle fhall be pub-
lished, without the exprefs licence of the
hijhop.
Firft Provincial Council of Cologne*
anno 1536.
This provincial council was called in the
time of Paul III. and of the Emperor
Charles V. by Herman de Meurs, arch-
bifhop of Cologne; who afterwards embrac-
ing the new doclrine of Luther, fent for
Bucer and Melancthon to preach it in
his archbijhopric; and whofe engagement to
this new doclrine was fo ftrong, that he ra-
ther chofe to leave his archbi/Jjopric than re-
nounce it; and fo he died in 1552, in the
herefy which he had embraced.
Art. 32, 33. Contain an advice to fuch
as hzvefeveral benefices •, efpeciallv with the
cure of fouls, not to fatisfy themfelves, that
they have gotten the Popes [bodie the arch-
bijloop of Canterbury s) difpenfation for it;
but to examine themfelves, and fee whether
they
[ 222 ]
Cent, they have one *from God : neverthelefs, for
2LYL. fear they fhould injure their own confci-
ences, they are ordered to fubmit their dif-
penfations to the bifiops, that they may judge
impartially whether the pretences be juft.
In the fecond part of the council are 32
articles.
Art. 25. It were to be wifhed that cler-
gymen would not be prefent at weddings.
Art. 40 — 47. Speak of the facrament of
marriage, and wifh that the good cuflom
oifajling and receiving the communion before
marriage, were again reftored. It enjoins
curates to marry none, unlefs the banns were
published three times; as alfo not to marry
any ftrangers without certificate from the
place of their abode, to teftify that they
are not already married, and without a li-
cence from their curates that they may be
married by another. And if there be any
degrees of confanguinity between the per-
fons, who are to be joined in marriage, and
if they have obtained a difpenfation from the
Pope, to examine it, and if they find the
copy is not true, to declare their difpen-
fation null: as alfo to forbid thofe fports at
church, which are ufual after the celebration
of marriage, with the new-married couple.
It is alio forbidden to zixflefh in the holy
time of Lent, upon account of weaknefs,
without licence from a curate.
* Qu ? If this advice can ever be unfeafonable?
Council
t 223 1
Council of Mentz, anno I C40, Cent.
XVI
Determines that the marriage of children, 1
without the confent of their parents, is null
and void \ and orders, that all marriages mail
be celebrated in the churchy with the ufual
cere?nonies, and after the banns have been
thrice publifhed. See Stat. 26 Geo. II.
c- 33-
Divines of Paris, affembled at Mathu-
rins, May 6, 1518.
They gave their judgment on two pro-
poiitions concerning indulgences. The firfl
was — " Whofoever mall put into the cru-
" /ade-hox a tejloon, or the value of it, for a
" foul that is in purgatory, he fhall free
" that foul immediately, and it mail in-
" fallibly and diredtlygo to par adife. Item.
" If he caft in ten tejloons for ten fouls, or
<c a thoufand tejloons for a thouf and fouls,
" they mall go immediately and certainly
" into par adtfe."
This, the Paris divines, alarmed with
what Luther had publifhed about indul-
gences, were afraid to approve of ; however,
they approved of zfecond proportion, which
foftened the Jirjl, by faying — " We muft
" leave it to God to apply the treafure of
" the church to fuch fouls as Hepleafeth"
On May 16, 1526, The faculty pafled a
general cenfure on ILrafmuss Colloquies, as a
work wherein the fa/Is and abftinences of the
3 church .
[ 224 ]
Gent, church are little efteemedy prayers to the
V*' virgin and faints laughed at, and virginity
is fet below marriage.
There is alfo another cenfure, April 30,
1530, on the two following propofitions,
viz.
Firjl. That the fcriptures can't be well
underftood without a knowledge in the He-
brew and Greek tongues.
Second. That a preacher can't explain the
epiftles and go/pels aright without the faid
tongues.
The firjl is condemned as rafh arid Scan-
dalous— thtfecond as falfe and impious, and
which difcourages Chriflian people from
hearing the word of God. They add, that
both of them render their authors fufpe&ed
of Lutheranifm.
N. B. One precedent, at leaft, of that
negleBy and indeed, of that contempt, among
Chriftiansy of the original fcriptures.
How would \t found to the eats of commoh-
fenfe and right reajbn, to be told of a people
who cultivate the kn6wledge of moft other
languages, and defpife the attainment ofthofe9
in which the only foundation of their re-
ligion is contained ? — We fhould be ready
to fay — u Surely, ignorance is the mother
" of that peoples devotion"— yet in fo fay-
ing we muft reproach ourfelves.
It is to be remarked, that whenever men
have fought dominion over the minds and
confeiences of their fellow- mortals, they
• have
[ 225 ]
have ever wifhed to keep them in igno- Cent.
ranee; this is by no means to be confined X
to the church of Rome ; the leaders among
the fanatical ledtaries in the lafl century,
decried all human learning as heathenijh9 an-
tichrijlian, and profane. — Dr. South (Ser-
mons, vol. iii. p. 500) obfefves, that all
" learning was then cried down, fo that,
" with them, the beft preachers were
" they that could not read, and the beft
cc divines, fuch as could not write. - — ■
" Latin" fays he (Sermon intitled Chrif-
iian PentecoJIJ " unto them was a mortal
" crime, and Gree&, inftead of being the
'* language of the Holy Ghojl (as in the
<( New Teftament it is) was looked upon
M as the Jin againft it : fo that, in a word*
" they had all the confufion of Babel
" among them, without the diverfity of
" tongues."
What's Latin, but the language of the beaji f
Hebrew and Greek is not enough a feaft :
Hant we the Word in Englijh, which, at eafes
We can convert to any fenfe we pjeafe ?
Let them urge the original, if We
Say 'twas firjl writ in Englijh, fo'i /hall be.
For we'll have our own way, be't wrong or right,
And fay, by ftrength of faith, the crow is white.
See (jREYi Hun. vol. i. 280* n. 3d edit.
The great and learned Mr. Selden was a
member of the affembly of divines, anno
1643; and fometimes, when they had cited
Vol* III. Q^ a text
[ 226 ]
Cent, a text of fcripture to prove their affertion,
XVL he would tell them — " Perhaps in your
" little pocket-bibles withgilt leaves" (which
they would often pull out and read) " the
" tranjlation may be thus, but the Greek or
" the Hebrew Jignifies thus and thus? and
fo would totally filence them. Whit-
hcke, 71.
Erasmus.
This great and learned man was born at
Rotterdam , anno 1464 or 1465. Du Pin
relates a curious anecdote relative to him.
His father Gerard had two fons, by Mar-
garet the daughter of a phyfician of for-
goes, to whom he had made a promife of
marriage; the eldeft of thefe fons was named
Peter, and the younger Erafmus. Gerard
was refolved to have married Margaret, but
his father and brothers would not fuffer him
to do it; therefore he Hole away out of that
country and went to Rome, leaving Mar-
garet great with child of her fecond fon.
She went to Rotterdam to lie in there, where
Erafmus was born.
His father was at Rome, where he got his
bread by writing, when he was informed
that Margaret his fpoufe-eleft was dead.
He had always entertained hopes, that fhe
fhould at laft become his wife, and was fo
fenfibly touched with the news of her
death, that he gave over all thoughts of
6 marriage.
t 227 ]
marriage, and entered into priejfs orders. Cent.
Yet the news proved falfe; for when he re- XVIi
turned into Flanders, he found her ftill
alive, with his two fons, whom (he was
forced to provide for. Now, though he
was no more in a condition to marry, or to
live with her, yet he always loved her, and,
fo long as he lived, he took care of the two
fons he had by her. As for himfelf, he was
a man of good learning, had a talent for
preaching, and in that employed himfelf
the reft of his life.
Erafmus entered into the order of the
canons regulars at Stein, when he was
about nineteen years of age, but difliking
the way of life, he left it, and, at his in-
treaty, Julius II. gave him a difpenfation
from his vows. This great man had a foul
too enlarged, and a mind too well culti-
vated, to relifh the wretched fchoo I- divinity
of his day; he wrote many treatifes, and
brought much controverfy upon himfelf,
from men who feemed to have become his
enemies, becaufe he wifhed to tell them fome
truth. At the requeft of the Pope, the
Emperor, the King of England, the Cardi*
nals, Prince George of Saxony, and his own
friends, he at laft attacked Luther's book
" de Servo Arbitrio," which engaged him
in a long controverfy with Luther* How-
ever, he was fufpected in fome points of
Lutherani/m^ and fome propofitions were
Q^2 prefented
• •
[ 228 ]
yv7* Pre^entec^ t0 the parliament of Paris, in 1 52 &
m L_ which were cenfured as erroneous and fckif
matical, by Natalis Bedda, fyndic of the fa-
culty.
Erafmus wrote an Apology, in which
he detected Bedda s difingenuoufnefs, and
refuted his cenfures; however, a decree
againft Erafmus was publifhed at Paris
1532.
The offence which Erafmus gave, by
fpeaking too freely againft the monks, the
fchool- divines, and againft fome fuperftitions,
occafioned him many bitter enemies among
the fchool- divines and monks, who charged
him with error, herefy, and impiety. The
freedom with which he reproved them, the
prejudices they were pofleffed with againft
every thing that appeared new, their bigotry
in adhering to fome common opinions and
cuftoms, were the caufes of all that trouble
which he fuffered from them.
In fhort, Erafmus, notwithftanding his
early prejudices for the church of Rome, de-
claimed openly againft thofe, who, neglect-
ing thofe facred fountains of truth the holy
fcriptures, fpent their time about queftions
of no moment, and who, neglecting the
duties of true religion, too much confided
in ceremonies. — He longed for a reformation
of manners among the clergy, as the beft
way of putting an end to thofe diforders
and confufion?, which had been occafioned
by
[ 229 ]
by the handle they had given to their oppo- Cent.
nents the Lutbera?is. Inftead of this being XVI
taken in good part, they fele&ed pieces of
his writings, lame and imperfect fentences,
detached from what went before , and from
what followed after, and thus they obtained
the decree againft him as before mentioned.
His maxim was — " I defire to do good to all
*' mankind, without offending any man," — but
he found, as every man will, that this is
impoilible.
He died, however, a true Catholic (af-
ter refufing a Cardinals hat) at Bafl,
where he was redlor of the univerfty, anno
In one of his epiftles he fpeaks of
^ertullian, and feems to endeavour to
foften many errors of that father, wherein
he mentions the antients as againft fecond
marriages, and that they even enjoined ce-
libacy.
In another, to the bifhop of Rochejier, he
tells him, that, on one iide, he had the
monks and divines to encounter with, and
they defigned his ruin; and, on the other, the
Lutherans, who fretted at him, becaufe he
retarded their triumphs, as they pretended,
and would not openly profefs Luther's doc-
trine. He fays, there were fome things in.
that doctrine which he did not underftand
1 — fome which he doubted of — and fome
which his confcience would not allow him
Qw3 to
Cent.
XVI.
[ 230 ]
to maintain: and he wifhed that the difor-
ders which Luther had raifed, might be as
a bitter and violent potion, which might
purge the church.
In an epiftle to Francifcus a Victoria, he
mentions an horrid faying of St. Jerome's
on the fubject of marriage, viz. " What ki?id
of good can that be, that is only approved
of, in comparifon with jomething that is
more finful?"
Erafmus wrote a book intitled — " The
inftitution of a Chrifiian marriage." — In
the preface he obferves, that, " Of all things
in this life, marriage is of the greateft
importance — the Pagan philo fop hers have
written of it, with all the prudence that
reafon could fugged to them. There
have been an infinite number of laws
made for the durablenefs and facrednefs
of marriages.
" It feems the antient Chrifiians were
more negligent of this, than of other
things, becaufe the greateft part of them
wTere, by a fervent zeal, wonderfully in-
clined to celibacy and perpetual virginity.
This is the reafon that fo many of them
have made panegyrics on virginity, and
have prefcribed rules to widows and wr-
gins how to live devoutly, and thzxfew
or none of them have done the fame to
married perfons."
He defines marriage, with the lawyers,
[ 23r 3
to be " A lawful and perpetual union of Cent.
*' man and wife, in order to the procreation
u of children; which includes a partner-
*' fhip of life and goods. That procreation
<c being the end of marriage, it cannot
<c properly be faid that marriages, between
<c perfons not capable of having chil-
*' dren, are true ma?'riages, yet he is fatis-
*% fied that the church doth approve of
u them, and that they are in themielves
H lawful.
■" He fpeaks occafionally of the cere-
44 monies of ant tent Pagans in their marri-
" ages. He treats very fully of the mar-
riage between Jefus thrift and his churchy
of which, marriage among Chrijlians is
zfacrament ox fign*"
He fays, u That fome ant lent divines con-
" fidered marriage only as a fign, and did
*' not acknowledge that it conferred grace,
" and therefore did not place it in the rank
" of thofe that are properly called facra-
" ments of the New Tejiament; in which,
" the fgns are efficacious by virtue of the
€f covenant, in which God has declared his
" will. But that the more plaufible opi-
" nions of modern divines had prevailed,
" who taught, that in marriage, lawfully
*' folemnized, there is conferred, as in other
" facraments, a fpecial gift of the Holy
" Ghoft; by which the man and the woman
f< are confirmed in their refolutions to live
Q^4 " together
<c
<c
C(
C 232 3
together in perpetual agreement — but,
as in the other facraments, we do in-
cur the difpleafure of Heaven, if we do
not receive them as we ought to do,
fo the fame thing happens in mar-
riage"
He confeffes, " that the primitive Cbrif-
tians had fo great a veneration for vir-
gins, that their glory did obfcure the
glory of marriage. He does not think
that every confent makes a true and law-
ful marriage. It is neceffary, that the
confent be given by verba de prafenti:
that it be free and voluntary, and accord-
ing to the laws"
He relates u many fubtle queflions of
lawyers concerning this confent, and
treats very fully of the obftacles of mar-
riage, as well of thofe which make it
void, as of thofe which make it unlawful,*
and would have the obftacle of fpiritual
relation altogether fuppreffed.
" That parents fhould inftrudt their
children, at about three years of age, to
c< bow at the name of Jefus, and to kifs
" the crucifix, &c."
Erafmus was of opinion that St. Paul
was married, and he tranflated yvvpis vvfyye,
Phil. iv. 3. by Germana conjunx, by
which, he believed, St. Paul meant his
nvife, becaufe the perfon here fpoken to,
was to minifter to the neceffities of the^-
male faints.
Gaufridus
<<
[ 233 ]
Gaufridus Boussardus, Cent.
Jv V 1*
Wrote a treatife concerning the celibacy «■
of the clergy. Upon that queftion, " Whe-
••! ther the P^ can permit a />r/>/? to
M marry' — he lays down/even proportions,
viz.
i. It is, and always has been, permitted
in every place, as well in the Eajlern as in
the Wejlern church, for the clergy that are
in lejjer orders to marry,
2. That it was allowed, as well in the
Eajlern as in the Wejlern churches, from the
very rirft beginning of the church, 'till the
times of Pope Siricius and Innocent I. to pro-
mote married men to the higher orders, in-
cluding that of the priejl hood-, and the priejls,
as well as others, were allowed to ifafc with
their wives.
3. Since the times of the above Popes,
it feems it had never been allowed, in the
Wejlern church, that married men, who lived
with their wives, mould be promoted to
deacon s or priejl1 s orders ; or that thofe who
were promoted to thofe orders mould have
wives — or, if they had any, they were ob-
liged to promife that they mould live in
continency with them. But 'till the times
of Pope Gregory, married men might be or-
dained deacons, without obliging themjelves to
continence.
4. Since the time of Pope Gregory I. it
has never been allowed in the Wejlern church
to
[ 234 ]
Cent, to ordain any deacons, but thofe who pro-
XVI- mife folemnly to live in continence.
5. It is and always has been allowed, in
the Greek and Oriental churches, that thofe
who are married, may be advanced to or-
ders, even priefis orders, and that they may
live with their wives.
6. It is not, nor ever was, allowed, that
thofe who are already in holy orders [priejls,
deacons, or fub- deacons) mould marry.
7. The Pope may, in fome cafes, grant
a difpenfation to a man that is in holy orders
to marry.
Cardinal Cajetan.
In a treatife on marriage he teaches, that
a marriage folemnized by proxy is not zfa-
crament, if it be not afterwards ratified by
the parties prefent — That clandejline marri-
ages may be fometimes permitted — That it
is abfolutely unlawful to converfe together
as man and wife, before they receive the
benediction of the church — That the priejl-
hood does not make a priejl abfolutely in-
capable of marrying, and that it does not
make void a marriage already contracted —
That the priejls, when they enter into or-
ders, take upon them the vow of virginity,
but the Pope may difpenfe with it. He may
alio difpenfe with the law, which obliges
them to live unmarried — That the Pope may
dijjblve a marriage contra<Sed, but ni$ con-^
fummated, and that he may do this not
onlj*
[ 235 1
only when either of the parties, or both, Cent.
are to enter into a monajlery, but alfo for XVIy
other reafons, becaufe the only reafon why
thefacrament of marriage is not dijfolvable is,
that it is the fign of the union of Jesus
Christ with his church; but marriage is
not a compleat fign of that union, 'till it be
confummated. That the Pope can difpenfe
with the vow of chajlity, but not with the
vow of living unmarried. He maintains the
validity of He?iry VIII. 's marriage with his
Jijier-in-law.
Cornelius Agrippa,
In his treatife of the facr am *ent of marri-
age, extols that facrame?it, for the anti-
quity of its inftitution, for its generality,
and for its being indijfoluble, becaufe, that,
by marriage, the man and his wife become
one flefh, and that a man cannot part with
his own flefh, yet he excepts the cafe ot for-
nication.
He was greatly cenfured, for faying
" that marriage was diflblved by adultery ."
He held, that Adams fin, " was nothing
t€ elfe, but the carnal knowledge of Eve"
— Et " ferpens Evam ten tans, Adami vere-
" trum.*"
John Fisher, Bifhop of Rochester.
He maintained, that Jesus Christ has
taught, and appointed many things, that are
not written in the four go/pels, and that the
* Holy
[ 236 J
Holy Ghojl might teach the church fome
truths, which Jesus Christ had not taught
before. He cenfures Luther 's arrogance, in
defpifing the laws, cufloms, opinions, and
faith of the church: and exhorts all Chrif-
tian princes not to give ear to his grofs im-
pieties-, and to employ the fame force againft
Luther s herefies, as they would againft
Turks , Saracens , and Infidels.
Fifher was one of thofe who refufed to
put King Henry VIII. in the Popes place,
by acknowledging his Majejly fupreme head
of the church of England, and taking the
appointed oaths — for which he was beheaded,
June 17, 1535,
Jacobus Latomus.
He was doSlor and profeffbr of divinity at
Louvain, and a great controverfialift againft
Luther and his dodxines.
In a treatife on Marriage, he begins with
laying down fome principles concerning that
facrament. To prove that a marriage con-
trafled and confummated can only be diflblved
by death, he lays it down —
1 . The facrament prefuppofes the con-
tract, and if a ftop be put to the contract,
the facrament is null, as if, in baptifm, the
water were hindered from touching the
body, then there would be no baptifm.
2. When the contract is valid, and made
according to the laws, then, neither the con-
tra^
t 237 1
trail nor the facrament can be made void by Cent
the fins of the contractors. XVI,
3. Marriage is indijfoluble by the law of
God, founded on this divine oracle — They
two Jh all be one fejh — what God hath joined
together, let no man put a/under.
4. It is contrary to the law of the gofpel,
to fay, that a marriage contracted, and coti-
fummated, can be dijjbhed during the lives
of the parties; which he proves by the au-
thorities of St. Auflin, St. Jerome, St. Am-
brofe, St. Chryfojiom, and fome other fa-
thers.
From thefe principles he concludes, that
a marriage contracted and confummated, can
never be diffolved, in the cafe of adultery.
But he maintains, that, when it is not con-
fummated, it is diffolved if either of the par-
ties do enter into a religious order, becaufe
the perfon that does fo, is civilly dead.
Franclscus de Victoria,
Profeffor of divinity at Salamanca, where
he died anno 1546.
In a leBure on marriage, which he com-
pofed on occafion of the divorce of the
King of England, he fays —
1. Marriage is an indiffoluble contract
between man and wife; and there are two
ends of it; the one is, the procreation and
education of children; and the other is, the
mutual affiftance that they ought to give
one
one another; that the confent of bujband and
wife is abfolutely neceffary to marriage, and
to be plain and exprefs per verba de pra-
fenti.
2. That princes, as well as the church,
have power to determine obftacles that
break marriages ; but that it is in the power
of the church to take that power from them,
and to difcharge them to take the concerns
of marriage under their cognizance.
3. The obftacles of marriage mentioned
in Leviticus, are not all of perpetual ob-
ligation, by the laws of God and of na-
ture.
Johannes Cochljeus,
A great writer againft the Lutherans.— ~
He declaimed boldly againft the impudence
of thofe, who allowed priejis and monks to
marry, and all forts of people to carry away
thtfpoufes of Jesus Christ.
Council of Trent, begun Dec. 13th,
1545, ended 1563.
This council may be faid to have finally
fettled and fixed the canon of Popery — to
have collected together all the Popijh doc-
trine relative to the facrament of marriage,
celibacy of priejis, polygamy, clandejiine marri-
ages, and marriage ceremonies, &c. and to
have formed the whole into one connected
Jyjlem, which, receiving the Popes approba-
tion, became the rule of faith touching thefe
matters,
[ 239 ]
matters, and remains fo in the church of Cent,
Rome to this day. XVI.
It would extend this work beyond all
reafonable bounds, to fet down the various
arguments, pro and con, on the feveral fub-
jed:s relative to marriage, which were fo-
lemnly treated at this famous fynod-, they
may all be found in Brent's tranflation of
u The Hiftory of the Council of Trent,
*' written in Italian by Pietro Soave Polano."
— Let it fuffice that I tranfcribe the canons
formed and published on the occafion, as
I find them in my author, p. 784.
u. The dodlrine of the facrament of mar-
M riage did contain; that Adam did pro-
" nounce the bond of matrimony to be per-
9t petual, and that only two perfons may
" be joined therein; a thing more plainly
€C declared by Christ, who alfo by his
" paffion hath merited grace to confirm it,
M and to fandtify thofe that are joined;
" which is intimated by St. Paul, when he
" faid that, " this was a great facrament in
" Christ and the church" Whereupon
" matrimony in the evangelical law, ex-
" ceeding the antient marriages, by addi-
" tion of grace, is juftly numbered among
" the facrament s of the new law. There-
iC fore the Jynod, condemning the herefes
" in this matter, doth conftitute the Ana-
u THEMATISMS. N. B.
ff 1 . Againft him that (hall fay, that ma-
" trimony is not one of the feven facra-
" ments
[ 2+0 ]
Cent. " merits inftituted by Christ, and doth not
jCVI. " confer grace.
" 2. Or that it is lawful for Chrijlians to
" have many wives at once, and that it is
" not forbidden by any law of God. — N.B.
"3. Or that only the degrees of affinity
f* and confanguinity : expreffed in Leviticus,
" may nullify the marriage, and that the
c< church may not add others, or difpenfe
" with fome of them.
" 4. Or that the church cannot confti-
u tute impediments, or hath erred in con*
" ftituting them.
" 5. Or that one of thofe who are mar-
" ried may diffolve the matrimony for
herefy, troublefome converfation, or vo-
luntary abfence of the other.
" 6. Or that lawful matrimony, not con-
cc fummated, is not diffolved by a folemn
" religious vow,
" 7. Or that the church hath erred in
<c teaching, that the matrimonial bond is
c? not diffolved by adultery.
"8. Or that the church doth err in fepa*
cc rating thofe who are married for a de-
" terminate or indeterminate time, in re-
" fpeft of carnal conjunction or cohabi-
" tation.
"9. Or that the ecclefiajiics of holy or-
" der, or profeffed regulars, may marry, as
" alfo all thofe who find they have not the
" gift of chajlity, in regard that God doth
" not
[ 24i J
fC not deny the gift to him that doth de- Cektj
* mand it. XVL
" 10. Or that (hall prefer the ftate of
<c marriage, to virginity and chajiity.
" ii. Or that the prohibition of marri-
w age, in certain times of the year, is fu~
" perftition, or mall condemn the benedic*
" tions and other ceremonies.
u 12. Or that matrimonial caufes do not
C€ belong to ecclefiaflical judges.
" The decrees of the reformation of mar-
iC riage did contain,
u i. That, howfoever it be true, that
1 ' clandefiine marriages have been true zn&law-
" Jul, fo long as the church hath not dif*
i( a/lowed them, and that the fynod doth ana-
" thematize (i. e. curfe) him who doth not
" hold them for fuch; as alfo thofe who
u affirm, that marriages contracted without
" confent of parents, in whofe power the
" married perfons are, are void, and that
" the fathers may entirely approve or dif-
" approve them, yet the church hath ever
" forbidden and detefted them.
M And becaufe prohibitions do no good,
u the^/yTWdoth command, that the matri-
" mony mail be denounced in the church,
<J three fejlival days, before it be contracted,
f ' and, no impediment being found, fhall be
" celebrated in the face of the church, where,
u the parifh priejl, having interrogated the
" man and the woman, and heard their con-
Vol. III. R " fent,
[ 242 ]
Cent. " lent, {hall fay — 1 join you in matrimony ',
x • " in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy
" Ghojiy and fhall ufe other words ao
M cuftomed in the province.
" Notwithstanding, the fynod doth re-
<c fer it to the will of the bijloop to omit
" the banns, but doth declare thofe to be
" incapable of marriage who attempt to
" contract it without the prefence of the
" parijh prieji, or another prieji of equal
" authority, and of /100 or three witnelies,
" making void and nullifying fuch con-
" tradts, and puni/Jmig the tranfgreflbrs.
" Afterwards it exhorts the parties not
" to dwell together, before the benediction,
" and commands the parijh prieji to have a
" book,, in which marriages, (o, con-
" tracked, mall be written.
" It exhorts the parties that are to be
" married to confejs, and communicate,
" before the contract, or confummation of
" the marriage.
"It refer veth the cujloms and ceremo'dies
" of every province, and will have this
te: decree to be of force, within 'thirty days
:< after it fhall be published in every
" parifh.
" 2. Concerning the impediment* of
%i marriage; the Jy nod doth affirm, that
the multitude of prohibitions, did caufe
great Jijis and Jcandais ; therefore it doth
reftrain that of fpiritual cognation, to that
which the baptized, and their parents,
" have
<<
it.
[ *43 1
94 have with the god-fathers and god-mo- Cent,
" therS) and the number of thefe to one XVI.
u man and one woman only. Ordaining
'* the fame about the kindred, which doth
94 arife by the facrament of confirmation.
u 3. It doth reftrain the impediment of
u honejly, which hath its beginning from
" contracts, to thzfirft degree only.
" 4. That of affinity by fornication to
" the firft and fecond.
N. B. The Albigenfes, about the year
1175, taught — that, " the confent of a
u willing couple, witheut the formality
<e of facer -dotal benediction, made a lawful
" marriage."
The Lollards, cent. 14, laid it down as
found doBrine, that, " if a man and woman
" came together with an intention to live
" in wedlock, this intention is fufficient,
" without paffing through the forms of
•' the church." — See before, vol. i. p. 148,
149, iftedit. — p. 140, 2d edit.
On the other hand, the church of Rome,
and more efpecially after the time of Pope
Innocent III. converted the above fcriptural
ideas of lawful marriage, into the damna-
ble fin of fornication and whoredom-, in
this the Protejiants have followed them.
But where is there lb much as a glimpfe
of fcriptural authority for this ? Where can
there be found a iingle lawful marriage
throughout the whole Bible, if the forma-
lity of facer dotal benediction, or paffing
R 2 through
£ 244 ]
Cent, through the forms of the church, are necei-
XVI . fary to conftitute it ? There is not the
fmalleft trace of any fuch thing. There-
fore, however this piece of ecclefiaftkal
knavery may be part of the craft by which
tome have gotten their wealth — yet, as has
been fhewn at large, as it is fubverfive of
the order of Providence — an infult on the
truth of God — and big with ruin to the
weaker fexy it may be deemed one of the
moft wicked, dangerous, and deftruftive
impolitions, that ever were invented, or/
forced on the credulity of mankind.
But there is fomething in the words of
this ca7tony as of others to the fame purpofe,
which are to be found in the courfe of the
preceding evidence, which evince the na-
ture and force of truth — it is like the
fun-, though clouds overwhelm its bright-
nefs, and conceal the full blaze of its
iplendor from our eyes, ftill it will be
perceived fufficiently to make our day—
thus will the truth of God, however
darkened by error, fhine fufficiently through
it, to difcover its power and influence on
the human mind. Here it has forced the
Papifis into an acknowledgment of it, and
fuch a one as contradicts their whole fyf*
tern on the fubjedl of marriage \ For if
this be a mere nullity without the forms of
the church, how can it raife an affinity be-
tween the parties ? If it does, what is that
affinity or relationfiip, but that which the
fcripture
[ 245 3
fcripture hath holden forth to us under Cent.
the idea of marriage ? If it does not, how xv*'_
can there be any affinity reaching between
defcend-ents to the fir ft and fecond degree*
when there was none between the parents
or ancejtors? The idea of a nullity deftroys
that of affinity — and that of affinity de-
ftroys that of nullity. Take the matter ei-
ther way, it proves that the truth was too
hard for them, and above their art to con-
ceal entirely.
Wheatly, on the Common Prayer,
edit. 7th, p. 424, tells us, that " bajlard
" children' (/. e. thofe born only under
the law of God and nature] ** are no
" more at liberty to marry within the
" degrees of the hevitical law, than thofe
" that are legitimate " fi. e. born of parents
joined by priejlly ceremony.) But why not?
If the marriage of the parents is a nullity,
the fappofed confanguinity or affinity be-
tween the dejeendents mud be a nullity
alfo — for out of nothing can come no-
thing.
This ftrange jumble between truth and
falfijood, making th^ fame marriage to be
fo valid as to fall within the reach of the
hevitical law in refpec't of the irTue, and
yet fuch a nullity with refpect to the par-
ties themfelves as to be no better than
whoredom and fornication, is too palpable
inconfiftency and contradiction to agree
even with itfelj] and can never be proved
R 3 to
[ 246 ]
Cent, to harmonize with the uniform and confift-
XVI* ent fcheme in God's word.
Mr. Wheatly, p. 219. concerning
the place where the ceremony is to be per-
formed, expreffes himfelf thus — " And
" fmce God himfelf doth join thofe that
M are lawfully married ; certainly the houfe
u of God is the fitteft place wherein
" to make this religious covenant. And
" therefore, by the antient canons of this
" church, the celebration of matrimony
" in taverns, and other unhallowed places,
" is exprefsly forbidden." Here he cites
an old Popifli canon of Winton, made anno
1287, which was not long after marriage
was made a facrament. " And the office
c* is commanded to be performed in the
" church, not only to prevent all clandef-
" tine marriages ; but alfo that the fa-
" crednefs of the place may ftrike the
" greater reverence into the minds of the
" married couple, while they remember
" they make this holy vow in the place of
" God's peculiar prefence."
Thus we fee, what reverence is to be
paid to the marriage-ceremony, of man's in-
vention, while the ordina?ice of God's in-
fiituiion (Gen. ii. 24.) if without the for-
mer, is dishonoured with the opprobrious
ftigma oi whoredom and fornication. — Surely
nothing but the impudence of Popery could
ever have dared to have tetfuch an example
of contempt.
A Jewifh
[ H7 ]
A Jewifh prieji, under the law, who Cent.
had taken upon himfelf to introduce an XVI.
wicommandcd ceremony into the temple-ivor-
Jlnp, and had fo fpoken of it, as to endea-
vour to perfuade the people that it was or-
dained of God — and that fome other ordi-
nance, which was of God, was not to be
regarded but as criminal without it — would
probably have been ftoned to death {ox fa-
crilege and blafphemy, by the fentence of
the judges of IjraeL
For my own part, I can find juft as
much fc rip t ure authority for changing a ci-
vil contraB into the form of a Jacrament, to
be adminiftered, v&fuch, by the hands of
a Popijh prieji, as for turning it into a re-
ligious ceremony y to be adminiftered by a
Protejiant minifler at the communion table in
a church. And I do believe, that we may
venture to fuppofe, if the former had never
been invented, the latter had never been
thought of*
One thing is very certain, that, they
almoft equally contribute to hide from the
eyes of men, the real nature, the true ef-
fence, the certain obligation, the antient
fimplicity, and the appointed efficacy of the
primary infitution, and thus affift to carry
on that fcheme of female ruin, which evi-
dently refults from vacating every contract
but what arifes from their own authority.
"5. It doth take away all hope of dif-
" -penfation, for matrimony wittingly con-
R 4 " traded
r 248 ]
Cent. " traded in degrees prohibited ; and to
" thofe who have ignorantly contracted,
ft without the fohmni ties9 in cafe of proba-
" ble ignorance, a dif pen/at ion — gratis.
" But to contract in degrees prohibited,
" a difpenfation fhall never be granted, or
" feldom only, for a juft caufe, without
t€ cojl-y nor in the fccond degree among
" princes ', except for ^public caufe.
" 6. Matrimony fhall not be contracted
" with a woman Jiolen away, fo long as
" (he is in the power of him that didjieal
" her; and doth declare thofe raptors,
" and thofe who do affift them with coun-
" fel, aid, or favour, excommunicated, in-
" famous, incapable of all dignity; and
*%t the raptor, whether he marry the wo-
" man or not, fhall be bound to give
<c her a dowry t at the pleafure of the
" judge.
fl 7. It ordains that vagabonds (hall not
" marry, without a diligent inquifition
•' firft made, and licence of the ordinary,
" exhorting the fecular magiftrates to pu-
" nifh them feverely.
" 8. It doth ordain againR: concubinaries,
" that being adrrioniftied thrice by the or-
" dinary, in cafe they feparate not them-
" felves, they (hall be excommunicated, and
(C perfevering one year after the cenfure,
" the ordinary (hall proceed feverely a-
" gainft them -, and the concubines, after
three admonitions, fhall be punifoed,
and.
[ 249 1
*f and, if the bijkop fliall think lit, chafed Cent.
" out of the territory, by afliftance of XVI-
" the fecular power* f
,€ 9. Il commandeth every temporal
" lord and magifiratey upon pain of excom-
" munication, not to compel their fubjecls,
" or any ochers, to marry, diredlly or in*
" direcUy.
" • o. It doth reftrain the antient pro-
" hibitions of nuptial folemnities, from Ad-
" vent to the Epiphany, and from Afo-
f * pP 'cdnefday to the otlaves of E a s t e R . ' '
The Papijls borrowed many things
from the heathens, and, among others, the
prohibiting marriage at certain religious fea-
Jons of their own creating: thus the Ro-
mans would not permit thofe days that
were dedicated by them to acts of religion,
to be hindered or violated by nuptial cere-
monies. See Wheatly on Com. Prayer,
edit. 7. p. 427.
The heathens alfo were fo fevere on
children's marrying without confent of pa-
rents or guardians, as to declare the mar-
riage to be null, and the children to be baf-
tards. The antient canon law of the Greek.
church, accounts all children who marry
without confent of parents, while under
their power, to be no better than fornica-
tors, The church of England, before the
marriage-acl, did not proceed to fuch ex-
tremities, though (lie took all imaginable
care
[ 25° 1
Cent, care before-hand to prevent fuch mar-
XVI- riages. See Wkeatly, 427.
After the evidence which has been pro-
duced in this chapter, of the infolent and
daring attacks upon the divine (economy,
refpecting marriage, "which were made and
carried on for above 1 500 years together,
to the utter demolition of that plan which
was ordained by the Creator, and by His
command recorded in the Hebrew J crip tures,
it is to be hoped we fhall hear no more of
church-authority for the truth of any thing
which is to be believed upon the fub-
jedfc.
We have been told, " that the primary
" command of God Almighty, in which
" He ordained and bleffed the increafe of
" mankind, is antiquated and paffed away —
" that it does not relate to Chrijlians —
" that the intercourfe of the fexes is evil m
" itfelf — that marriage was the confe-
" quence of Jin — that celibacy makes men
" like angels, and, that in comparifon
" thereof, marriage is Jinful — that all fc-
" cond marriages are no better than forni-
" cation — that thofe who do not marry
" according to the laws of the church,
" live in whoredom, if they cohabit toge-
" ther — that a new ordinance of marriage
*' wras ordained by Jesus Christ, appro-
" priated to Chrijlians, and that the divine
" economy refpedting the commerce of the
" fexes, as revealed by Mojes, is totally
" vacated
it
i<
i 251 ]
«* vacated and deftroyed by the law of the Cent.
" go/pel— th-aX when the race of mankind XVI*
" was to be increafed, before the coming
of the Mcfiah, marriage was to be fought
after, and even polygamy allowed; but now
it is for'.ndden — that celibacy and virginity
" ought to be looked upon as the higheit de-
u grees of perf dtion — that, next to this, is
" the tot; 1 abjlinenct of perfons who are
" married from each other. " — Thefe moft
notorious and horribly-deftrudtive lyes, with
as many more as would fill a Winchejler
buihel, may be picked out of the preced-
ing evidence, and may ferve to (hew us
how the credulity of one part of the world
can be impofed on by the knavery of the
ether — and, confequently, how careful we
fhould be, of adverting to any other autho-
rity for what we believe, than God's
WRITTEN WORD.
In fhort, the Chrijiian fathers, &c.
feem to have endeavoured to contrive a
religion of their own, as unlike that of the
Bible as they poffibly could; infomuch
that Jehovah might well complain of
them as of revolted Ephraim (Hof. viii. 12.)
and fay — / have written to them the
GREAT THINGS OF MY LAW, but they
were accounted ajlrange thing.
The TWO GREAT COMMANDMENTS,
on which hang all the law and the pro-
phets, contained nothing favourable to
clerical ambition, pride, and eovetoufnefs,
and
[ 252 ]
Cent, and thofe more particular precepts, which
- \ were derived from them, were too incon-
fiftent with the views of the clergy, to
maintain their weight and confequence
among them — therefore neither root nor
branch were fpared, but deitroyed by a
feries of traditional impofition on the
minds of men, till the laws of the church,
and not the laws of Jehovah, became the
meafure and rule of right and wrong.
Chrijlianity was not looked upon as the
unfolding and completion of the mind and
will of Jehovah, as revealed and pro-
mifed in the Hebrew fcripture, directing
us to make His laws our rule, His word
our guide ; but as a fyfiem independent of
every thing but itfelf, which was to be
fafhioned and formed into as many fhapes
as the imaginations of churchmen could
give it, and as belt fuited to promote their
total afcendency over the human under-
Jlanding, their entire dominion over the
conscience, and their uncontroulable dif~
pofal of the perfons and properties of man-
kind.
The antient and perfedl law of Jeho-
vah, which He, in His infinite wifdom,
ordained for the moral government of His
reafonable creatures, was too inimical to
the defigns of tcclefiajlical fraud, deceit,
and violence, to gain an admiffion into
the plan, either on the fubjedl of marriage,
or any thing elfe. — " Thus faith the
"■ churck,n
[ *53 1
f€ churchy was the warrant for men's be- Cent.
lief; and thofe who oppofed this, were _
certain to fufFer every pain and penalty,
which the meaneft and moll wanton cru-
elty could fuggeft : — while wilful murder,
adultery, fodomy, crimes made capital by
the law of God, were abfolved on a few
years penance.
Such was the ftate of our national Chris-
tianity, at the beginning of the reforma-
tion— the reformers once more brought the
fcriptures into view, with what fucpefs, as
to the matters which are the fubjedts of
thefe volumes, will be confidered in the
following chapter.
CHAP,
[ 254 3
CHAP. XIII.
Qbfervations on the foregoing — applied to the
Subjects of this Treatife.
H
AVING now, by a long induction of
particulars, (hewn how the fimple or-
dina?ice of marriage \ and the Creator's
whole plan for regulating the commerce of the
fexes, have been taken out of His hands, into
the hands of men, who have dared to throw
afide thofe laws which the Most High efta-
blifhcd for the propagation, continuance, and
prefervation of the hwnan fpecies — and more
efpecially for the prote&ion of female chajlity,
from the ravages of ungoverned and intempe-
rate lujl — by vacating all obligation between
the fexes, but what arifes from human con-
trivance— it may not be improper, in this
place, to make fuch remarks upon the
evidence, as will demonftrably fhew, that
our whole plan is founded in error, and ori-
ginates in the ufurped power of Popijh church-
men over the commandments and ordinances
of Jehovah, as by him delivered in his
MOST HOLY WORD.
It will then follow, that thofe miferies of
the female fex, which have been fo largely
fpoken of in the preceding volumes, and
which it is the author $ grand end and aim to
prevent, or remedy, on the bafis of the divine
3 law,
[ *SS )
la&, are the natural and inevitable confe-
quences of Popifh ufurpation over the under-
iiandings and confciences of mankind, and
of the abolition of that holy fyjiem of fecu-
rity and protection to the weaker fex, which
is afforded them by the folemn and unalter-
able ftatutes of Heaven.
As in what concerns the reit of the uni-
verfe in general, fo with refpecfl to the human
[pedes, the laws of Heaven zxzfimpk, unmixed
with dark and hard fpeeches, conceived in
words clear, plain, and eafy to be under-
stood : there are no fophijlical diftincftions
about what is or is not a marriage contract,
thus leaving fo important a concern vague and
indeterminate, as to the matter or effence of
it in God's fight ; there is nothing, in this
iefpe<5t, faid about priejls, furplices, altars,
churches, bells, mafs-books, banns, licences, dif-
penfations, outward religious rites and cere-
monies, or of any one requifite to marriage
but the Creator's own appointment \
Therefore, whether thefe things were in-
vented by Popes, Councils, Synods, or other
human power in the church of Pome — or
adopted by "John Doe and Richard Roe, as re-
quisites in the Reformed churches — they are
equally out of the queftion, and can no more
affeft the validity and obligation of God's
ordinance, than they can controul the courfe
of the fun.
The general command, when God bleiTed
the male and female, and faid — " Increafe
" and multiply' — was evidently to be done in
a way
[ *56 ]
a way which theCREATOR himfelf was to ap-
point; no device whatfoever of the creature
could any more interfere in this, than in the
difpofal and government of the univerfe.
That which was to be the efficient caufe of
-propagation , was to be alfo the matter of in-
diffoluble union between the male and female,
fo as to make them one flefio, and to create an
affinity or relation/hip between them, even
above and beyond that of parents and chil-
dren.— Gen. ii. 24.
Thus the matter flood on the original injti-
tution — but as the human race increafed, it
feemed good to infinite wifdom, to make fuch
regulations as mould obviate the fad confe-
quences of men's forgetting the ftri&nefs of
the matrimonial union, and taking upon them-
felves to diffblve its obligation. The feduc-
tion of virgins, and then forfaking them for
others, mull: be attended with confequences
of the molt fatal kind to them/elves, as well
as to fociety, in the confufion that would be
occafioned, not only with regard to the pro-
perty of the women, but alfo as to their if*
fue — it was therefore ordained, that where-
ever the marriage-union had pafled, it * muft
continue ; the man could not forfake the
woman, nor the woman give herfelf to ano-
ther, during the firft man's life — whether the
man, taking the virgin, was before in pof-
feliion of another or not, it made no differ-
* The author muft be fuppofed to except fuch cafes
as are excepted by the law. See, for inftance, Lev.
x\ ill, 6 — :8.
ence
t *S7 J
chce in thefe refpefts, he having become one
fefh with her, made her his unalienable pro-
perty from that moment, and it was not only
forbidden him to put her away, but fhe was
to be put to death if fhe went to another ; and
any man who took a woman that had be-
come another man's property, was alfo to
fuffer death. Thus were adultery and whore-
dom, feduflimi and prof itution, provided againffc
IN THE MOST EFFECTUAL MANNER.
Thus alfo was a line drawn, which none
could pafs with impunity ; and, that it might
be thoroughly underflood, it was delivered
to Mofes by Jehovah, and afterwards com-
mitted to writing, for all future generations,
in that facred and indelible fyftem of divine
jurifprudence, which bore the moft solemn
command, that none fhould add to it, nor
diminifh from it.
Such was the law of that kingdom, which
God eftablifhed over Ifrael, when he deli-
vered them out of JEgypt — bore them on
eagles wings, and brought them to himfelf — See
Exod. xix. 4, 5; where the Lord fays —
Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed,
and keep my covenant, then ye fall be a peculiar
treajure unto me above all people : for all the
earth is mine.
What the Jews fuffered for not obeying
God's voice in his commandments, their hiftory
informs us, and our own daily observation,
on their prefent lituation, evidently fhews us.
When it pleafed God, in the fullnefs of time,
to take out of the Gentiles a people for his
Vol. III. S name
[ 253 ]
name (Acts xv. 14.) by fending his own Sort,
Jesus Christ, to redeem them from all ini-
quity, and to purify to himfelf a peculiar peopU
zealous of '% good works — one capital and gra-
cious promife of the covenant ran thus —
" I will put my laws into their minds, and
" in their hearts will I write them. I will be
" their God — and they fh all be my people. See.
Jer. xxxi. 33. — As in another place he fays
'— / will call them my people that were not my
people — Hof. ii. 23. Rom. ix. 25, 26. — His
laws then, put into their minds, and written
in their hearts, were to be the ftatutes of that
kingdom within them — fee Luke xvii. 21. — of
which the Lord himself was to be Sove-
reign.— No other laws do we ever hear
mentioned, as the rule of their obedience \ but
the royal law (fee James ii. 8.) which had
once been delivered by Jehovah, in all the
awful majefty of Godhead at Mount Sinai.
Jesus, the great prophet like unto Mofes —
(fee Deut. xviii. 15. Aclsiii. 22.) — preached
thefe laws — declared that not a jot or tittle
Jhould pafs from them — that he who broke the
leaf of them, and taught men to do fo, Jhould
be called leaf in the kingdom of heaven.
Notwithstanding all this, as the fews had
made void thefe laws by their traditions, the
Chrifians, as we have feen, foon began to
tread in their fteps, and to fet up a kingdom of
this world, which they called the church, over
which man, not God, was to govern ; and in
which, not God's laws, but man's devices,
* See Tit. ii. 14.
were
t 259 i
Were to be the rule of obedience. The confe-
rences of this may be feen in the foregoing
pages of this volume, and the dreadful effects
are felt, feverely felt, by thoufands to this
hour.
There arofe men, who, under notions of
piety and purity, found fault with every thing
God had done, with refpect to peopling the
world j and plainly give us to underftand,
that if they had been to contrive the matter,
they would either have done it by fome other
method, or have put an end to the human
race. God had faid — * * Increafe and multiply "
—this they were for confining to the times
of the Jewijh difpenfation, and exhorted
Chrijlia?is to live in celibacy, alluring them
that this was " as far above marriage as the
" heavens were higher than the earth"
" Some there were of the moft eminent
c biftops, and moft zealous Chrijlians, who,
' having imbibed the philofophers opinions
1 and prejudices againft marriage, as an eftate
1 in itfelf unclean, and fo troublefome, that
4 it was utterly inconfiftent with an holy and
1 fpeculative life, did ever retain fuch an an-
1 tipathy againft it, efpecially in the clergy,
1 that they were inveighing againft them
* that were married, infomuch that they
' brought it into general diflike." — See Du
Pin, Cent. vii. p. 9. n. u The council of
Eliberis, anno 305, can. 33, actually de-
creed againft priefls marriage, lb.
However, with regard to the laity, in Or-
der to fandlify the unclean as well as they
S 2 could,
[ 26o ]
could, they invented priejtly benedi&ion, where
people married but once -, as for marrying afe-
eond time, it was called — " only a more fpe-
M cious and decorous kind of adultery"—
and priejis were forbidden fo much as to be
prefent at fecond marriages — which, by the
way, proves that marriages were yet looked
upon as valid, without zpriejl, only they were
deemed unholy* as wanting the benediction.
In proceis of time, this benediction of a
friejl paved the way for other religious forms
if words, and farther ceremonies. The reader may
eafily acquaint himfelf with their progrefs, by
reviewing the ftate of the preceding evidence
— Chap. xii.
At length, the laws of Jehovah, which
held forth the primary inflitution, in its whole
77ature and ejjence, as making the male and fe-
male one flejh, and as conveying an excluiive
property to the man m the woman, by the
fmple ordinance fet down Gen. ii. 24. were
fo far laid out of the queftion, as net only to
eftablifh no obligation what foe ver, (imply on
the footing of the Creator's own fiat; but
This, without the ceremonies which the church
had invented and impofed, was ftamped with
infamy, called fornication and whoredom, and as
fuch is looked upon in the Chrifian church
to this hour!
That this was not effected, but by flow
degrees, is very apparent from what paiTed irt
the fourth century ; when Conflantine, who
was a great favourer of the views of the
rlrrgy, as well as 'a great promoter of their
power,
t 261 ]
power, enacted a law to difcourage concubi-
nage, and to promote matrimony, as they * called
it ; which law provided for the legitimacy of
ante-nuptial children, i. €. fuch as were born
of parents who had lived together fimply on
the footing of God's own injlitution, and
whofe children began to be deemed baflards.
— u The church," it is faid, <e meddled not
*€ with thefe diftinctions of the civil laws,
u but, regarding only the law of nature, ap-
<c proved every conjunction of one man with
4< a woman, if it was with one woman, and
<c perpetual ; and the more fo, becaufe the
" holy fcriptures employ the name of wife
" and of concubine indifferently. " See before,
vol. i. p. 31, n. 1 ft edit. — p. 32. 2d edit.
By what has been faid, it appears, that the
notion of the unlawfulnefs of feco?id mar-
riages had taken deep root, and that polygamy,
of courfe, was indifcriminately banifhed from
the Chrijlian plan of marriage — but, that
prieftly benediction, and religious ceremony,
were by no means then eftablimed, as of the
ejfence of the lawful conjunction of the man
and woman.
As churchmen increafed in power and
wealth, the love of both increafed, in every
age; and, as we have already feen, by the moil
pregnant teftimonies, marriage was entirely
taken, as it were, out of God's hands, into
the hands of churchmen ; the Hebrew fcrip-
tures, relative to the commerce of the fexes,
The word matrimonium was borrowed from the
Heathen*— Zss Ains worth— fub voc.
S 3 for-
[ 262 ]
for certain very cogent reafons, laid out of the
cafe ; and what the Popes, councils, Jynods%
rnd human laws determined to be marriage %
was marriage ; what they determined to be
whoredom and fornication, was fo -, what they
determined to be bajlardy, was baflardy ; but
what God had determined to be, or not to
be, any of thefe, fignified no more than if
He had neyer determined any thing about the
matter.
The great affair of all was the invention
of Peter Lombard, when he found out mar-
riage to be a facr anient — this was the means
of throwing it entirely into the hands of the
priejls, and making it an objedt of the juris-
diction of ecclejiajiical judges. It gave the
churchmen a power of celebrating it with what
rites and ceremonies they thought proper, and
to declare, that, on no other terms than what
they had invented, could the parties be man
and wife in the fight of God— fo that all this
may be deemed pure, true, and genuine Popery
— which, by leaving men and women under
no obligation to each other, but on the footr
ing of what was afterwards finally deter-
mined and fettled at the council of Trent, has
opened that door to female ruin, which, in all
its increafing horrors, is fo peculiarly the dif-
grace of all Chrijlian countries in general,
and of this in particular, as to call aloud for
the reftoration of the divine law, which is the
only means of putting a flop to it.
As for the reformed church of England, it
pwns but two facraments, and of courfe does
not
[ 263 ]
not call marriage by that name , but when we
confider, that our " form of folemnization of
M matrimony'1 was compiled in the days of
Edward VI. by men who had been educated
in the church of Rome, and who muft have
had their minds prejudiced and deeply tinc-
tured with the Popiflo ceremonies, we are not
to be furprized that our ritual and that of
the Romifh church mould bear fo ftrong a re-
femblance.
It is to be adminiftered by a prieji — in a
fur p lice (fuperpellicio indutus9 fays the PopiJJ)
rubric) — in the church — at the communion-
table — " the man and woman are to kneel down
" before the Lord's table' at a certain part of
the fervice — " Sacerdos jubeat eos invicem jim-
'* gere dextras, die ens — Ego conjungo vos in
" matrimonium, in nomine Patris, & Ft Hi, &
" Spirit us Sancli. Amen." Rom.Rit. "Then
" fhall the prieji join their right hands
" together, and fay — " Thofe whom God
u hath joined together, let no man put afun-
« der 1 pronounce that they be man and
" wife together, in the name of the Father,
" and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghoft.
" Amen." Ch. of Engl.
The reafon which the council of Trent
gave for the ufe of thefe words, was, that —
" in a fhort time it might become an article
" of faith, that thofe words, pronounced by
94 the parifo-prieft, were the jorm of the fa->
44 crament."
Now, if an honeft Quaker was to fay to
me — 4€ Friend, thou doft not allow marriage
S 4 "to
ft
<(
[ 264 3
to be a facrament, that is, thou doft not
call it by that name; but, how doft thou
diftinguifh thy proceedings from thofe of
the church of Rome? how doft thou, as to the
thing it/elf] call it by w\\2Xname thou wilt,
" make more or lefs of it in reality, than hath
" been made by the council of Trent ?" — I do
confefs, that I know not how I mould get
rid of my plain friend, unlefs he would be la-
tisfied with a quibble, inftead of an anfwer, or
with a difiinffion, without difference enough
fairly and fubftantially to warrant it.
Were he to prefs me farther upon the fub-
je<5t of banns, difpenfations, and licences, or to
afk me to produce an authority from God's
word for our ritual, or almoft any thing be-
longing to it, I muft turn him over to popes,
councils, fathers, &c. and get out of his way
as faft as I could, or elfe endeavour to filence
him, by telling him, " that the aforefaid
" ritual is part of the law of the land, efta-
" blifhed by a£l of parliament, and is alio
" guarded by a canon, loaded with excom-
" munication ipfofaclo againft all impugners
" of it." — To this he might reply, that " in
<( the days of Henry the king — it was made
" felony for our priejls to marry — to deny
" tra?2jruljlantiation was burning alive, with
€C forfeiture, as in cafes of high treafon ; but
" thefe were ungodly laws, and therefore
" were repealed, and fo ought all other laws,
" which, like them, oppofe the truth of the
ft fcriptures, or lead people into error and
S "fuper-
[ *65 J
*' flip erjlit ion, by hiding from them the true
fi nature and obligation of God's injiitu-*
" tions"
The RomiJJj ritual is in Latin; which, ren-
dered into Englifh, begins thus — " The par i/b
6 priejl — parochus — who is about to celebrate
1 matrimony (publication of ^wj-havingbeea
' made on three fejlival days as before faid)
* if no lawful impediment hinder, fhall come
c into the church, cloathed in icfurplice (fu-
c perpellicioj and white robe (albdjlold) tak-
c ing with him at leaft one clerk, who may
' bring the book, and a veflel of holy water
1 with & fprinkler , before three, or two, wit-
' nefles, fhall afk the man and the woman
: (who for decency fhould be attended by
c their relations or neighbours) concerning
' their confent, feverally, in this mariner, in
c the' vulgar tongue.
" N. wilt thou take N. here prefent, for
1 thy law7ful wife, according to the rite of
' holy ?nother church ? The man lhall an-
1 fwer — I will, &c. &c.
" Then the priejl is to fprinkle the parties
1 with holy water; then he is to blefs the ring,
' and fprinkle it with holy water in the form
9 of a crofs ; and the bridegroom, receiving
c the ring from the priefl, is to put it upon
c the fourth ringer of the woman's left
' hand" (Digito annulari — a phrafe'borrowed
from the Heathens, as the cujlom itfelf * was)
* See Thelyph. vol. ii. 203, n. 2d edit. — p. 222 — 3, n.
id edit.
» the
[ 266 ]
" the prieft faying — In the name of the Fa-
cc tber, and of the Son, and of the Holy
« Ghojtr
The nuptial ceremony among the Hotten-
tots is as follows — " The men fquat them-
" felves on the ground in a circle, all but
" the bridegroom, who fquats in the center.
u The women, at fome diltance, fquat them-
" felves likewife in a circle about the bride,
rc who likewife fquats. Then the prieft, or
" matter of the religious ceremonies, who isf
u always that of the kraal where lives the
" brute* (and fo may be ftyled parochus)
" enters the circle of the men, and, coming
" up to the bridegroom, waters upon him a
" little — the bridegroom receives the Jircam
u with much eagernefs, rubbing it briikly
iC all over his body, and making with his
M long nails feveral deep icratches in his
<c fkin, that the urine may penetrate and
iC foak the farther. The priejt then goes to
" the circle of the women, and coming up
€€ to the bride, waters a little upon her; fhe
" receives and rubs the urine upon her body,
" with as much eagernefs as the bridegroom.
" Then goes the priejl again to the bride-
" groom, and having watered a little more
" upon him, away he goes again to the
€€ bride, and again waters upon her. And fo
" he goes from one to the other, 'till he has
" exhaufted upon them his whole flock of
" urine, uttering from time to time to each
" of them, one of the following good
3 " wishes.
C *67 ]
** wimes, till he has pronounced the whole
" upon them both. — '■* May you live long and
ft happily together. — May you have a Jon be-
" fore the end of the year. — May this fon live
" to be a comfort to you in your old age. — -
*' May this fon prove a man of courage, and a
'.* good buntfman" This is the whole of
<( the nuptial ceremony ; after which the
M whole company rife, and prepare for a
" feaft." See Kolben, Cape hift. vol. i.
P- 153- , ;
Now, I do not fuppofe that the reader can
perufe this account of fo filthy, fo ridicu-
lous, fo abfurd a ceremony, without laughing,
and feeling in his mind a moft fovereign
contempt for a people feemingly fo loft to
the poffemon of common rea/on. But this
is not the cafe ; there are doubtlefs as wife
and understanding men among the natives of
the Cape of Good Hope, as among the Euro-
peans (why mould there not ? — " God hath
" made of one blood all nations for to dwell on
" all the face of the earth") — Their fond-
nefs and refpecl for fo beaftly and abfurd a
ceremony, does not therefore proceed fro^n a
want of natural reafon, but, from a prostitu-
tion of their rational faculties, to a certain
thing called fuperftition , which, under the
aufpices of another certain thing called pneft-
craft, puts Chrijtians and Hottentots upon a
level, as to a blind fubrnimon of their under-
ftandings and confciences to thofe who have
been artful enough to gain an entire afcen-
dency
[ 268 ]
dency over them. Lord Peter s holy water
has no more to do with God's ordinance of
marriage, than the Savage s urine has ; but
neither the Hottentot nor the Papifl will
acknowledge that they are miftaken ; and I
ihould fuppofe, that a man would ftand as
b i a chance for his life in a Kraal at the
Cape, as in the Holy Inquifition at Rome, were
he to fay, in either place, what I have faid
upon the fubjedt.
The Hottentot anderfniaken, it mu ft be con-
feffed, is not quite fo cleanly as the Popi/h
ritual ; but it has this advantage over the lat-
ter, that it is not lying in the name of the
Lord ; — it is not a profefled impoftion upon
the minds of men, in the very face of God's
revelation — it is not an unauthorized ufe of
that venerable and holy name of the Lord
our God, in order to make men believe,
that marriage is, what God has never made
it — " zfacr anient, ordained by Chrijl — appro-
u priated to Chriftians."
Perhaps my Quaker friend might here re-
mind me — " thou fhouldft not throw Ji ones,
•• for thine houfe is alfo made of glafs."
In fhort, wherever the fmpk ordinance of
God is obfcured, fo that men are kept in the
dark as to its nature and obligation — wher-
ever thofe wife and holy laws, which God
hath made for the prefervation of his crear
tures from mif chief and ruin, are fufp ended,
on fome terms and conditions of human in-
vention, fo that they cannot operate, or an-
fv/er
[ 269 ]
fwer.the ends for which they were revealed—
wherever an human ceremony is impofed upon
the underftandings of mankind, as that, with-
out which, the pofitive institution of God Al-
mighty is null and 'void to all intents and pur-
pofes whatfoever — it makes little difference,
by what na?ne the obftacle be called, or by
whom invented; it is an infolent attack upon
the divine fovereignty — a daring invafion of
the divine prerogative of legijlation — a down-
right and open rebellion againft the majejly of
God — and, whether this be done by Chriftians,
on this, or on' the other fide the Tyber —
Tros, Tyriufue, mi hi nullo difcrimine agetur. Virg.
We have feen, in the long detail of the
foregoing evidence, fome dreadful mifchiefs,
which have attended the unnatural oppo-
iition, raifed againft the primary decree of
Heaven, relative to the propagation of the hu-
man /pedes, —The celibacy of the clergy, being
contrary to nature itfelf, as well as to fcrip-
ture, produced evils of the moft horrible and
dejlruclive kind — this may be concluded,
from the many canons we find againft fodomy,
child-murder, either by caufing abortion or
otherwife — likewife, the frequent mention
of the crimes of adultery, whoredom, and for-
nication, particularly charged on the clergy^ as
alfo of bajlards being excluded from holy or-
ders, and the like.
Thefe are ftanding proofs of the * mifchiefs
which
* The Wickliffites or Lollards as they were called, en-
deavoured to get their doctrine approved by parliaments
and
[ 2;o ]
which enfued from men's inventingfcbewes of
holinefs and purity, in order to maintain which,
the word of God was thrown afide, and the
wifdom of man exalted in its place. The union
of tbefexes, though ordained of God, as that
injiitution by which the world fhould be peo-
pled, was ftamped with a degree of infamy,
as impure in itfelf, and cauling a defilement
in thofe who engaged in it, unlefs priejlly bene-
diction and religious ceremony interpofed:
and even here, it was ftill too impure to be en-
gaged in by thofe who miniftered in holy
things; and therefore forbidden to the laity f
without the purification of holy water, &c.
and forbidden to the clergy entirely.
Impediments to marriage, which are men-^
tioned in God's law, were difpenfed with—
others were invented, which God's law never
mentions, and made the grounds and caufes
of diflblving marriage — fuch as between god-
and in 1395 prefented a remonftrance to the Houfe of
Commons, containing many articles, one of which was— -
** that the celibacy of the clergy occafioned many fcan-
" dalous irregularities in the church" — another was—
" that the vow of Jingle life, undertaken by women, was
" the occafion of numberlefs diforders, and of the mur*
" der of multitudes of children unbaptized, and even un-
" born." Rapin, vol. i. 481. Qu? Where is there
any thing in the fcripture which authorizes bringing:
women under fuch a ftate of bondage to fear and jhamey
as to induce them to rnurder their children, in order to
conceal their pregnancy or delivery? No fuch thing was-
ever known or heard of in the church of God, 'till lyes
and ficlions took place of the divine law ; when celibacy
was preferred to marriage — and marriage itfelf only allow-
ed under fach terms as men invented, and impofed on thsir
fellow-creatures.
fathers
[ m ]
fathers and god-mothers at baptifm or confirma-
tion— relatives to the feventh degree — and even
as far as any relationjhip could be traced —
a man's having another wife living, though
me was under circumftances, by which every
end of marriage was prevented — the apoftle's
rule was inverted, it was no longer better
marry than burn, but better burn than marry —
thus were the Chriftians laid under a yoke to
which the Jews were utter ftrangers, and
were taught to believe, that, whatever marri-
age was by the Mofaic law, it was now to-
tally altered; it was " afacrament, inftituted
u by Chrijl, and appropriated to Chriftians' —
a law of the go/pel, was to mperfede the law
of Jehovah as delivered at mount Sinai, and,
in fhert, marriage was to be what churchmen,
from time to time, were pleafed to make it;
for which, after fome faint attempts to jus-
tify their proceedings, by, what they Jlyled,
" the new evangelical law," they fairly and
honeftly avowed the power of the church,
i. e. of the Pope, and his coadjutors, the car-
dinals, archbi/fjops, and bijhops in council af-
fembled, to.be paramount to all other power
whatfoever; they trampled all laws, divine and
human, under foot; and not what God had
faid in his Word, but what the church had
faid in its canons and decrees, was the rule of
faith and manners.
There is a paffage in the Turkijh Spy, on
the innovations which human imagination,
and church power, introduced in the place of
God's laws, which I {hall make no apology
for
[ 2/2 J
for quoting on this occafion, as its fub-
ject-matter, and the reflexions with which
it concludes, are much to our purpofe, and
well worthy our obfervation.
" By the very fame rule, they introduced
the ufe of images and pictures in their
churches: and the veftments of their priejls^
the ornaments of the altar, the tapers,
lamps, incenfe, flower -pots, and other religi-
ous gaieties, were fafhioned according to
the patterns they received from the priejls
of "Jupiter, Apollo, Diana, and the refc of
the heathen deities. Hence, the feftivals of
the gods and goddejfes were turned to holy-
days of faints-, and temples, before confe-
crated to thefun, moon zn&Jlars, were afrefh
dedicated to the apojlles and martyrs.
" Thus the very Pantheon itfelf in Rome,
or temple of all the gods, in procefs of time,
by an ecclefafic dexterity, was converted to
the church of all faints. — In a word, Chrif
tianity in all things feemed no other than
Gentilifmin difguife. And it mull be thought
a pious fraud, thus to wheedle fo many
millions of finners into the bofom of the
church, whether they would or no.
" Oh father William! doft thou not blufli
at thefe trivial excufes, for the manifeft
violation of the laws of God ? Can man be
wifer than the Omnipotent? Or will he pre-
fume to correct the ways of him that is
PERFECT IN KNOWLEDGE? Is the true
religion to be propagated by imitating the
idolatrous rites of infidels? Or by profti-
" tuting
[ 273 3
•* tuting the facred injunctions of Heaven
" to the caprices of human policy? Did any
" wife law- giver condefcend to alter and new-
Y model his laws, to humour a peevifh cap-
€< tious fubject? Would he add, or diminifo
€C any thing for the fake of gaining a faction
■c or party? and can we think, that God
£* ever defigned, to have His divine laws
u garbled and mixed with profane induU
" gemes, difpenfations, and amendments of
£' mortals? As if He had Been ignorant what
" he did; when He divulged his Jlatutes, and
ic wanted the counfel of his creatures to help
" him out at a dead lift.
" Was that tendernefs only to be fhewn to
" the Jews for a time? And were they, for
" ever afterwards, to be fcandalized? In vain
€< does the church daily pray for the cbnver-
(< fion of that people, whilft by her doBrines,
*' and daily practices, (he hardens them more
" in their infidelity" Turkifi Spy, vol. vii.
p. 304, 305.
Though it be evident from the fcriptures
(comp. Ifaiah vi. 9, 10. with Acts xxviii.
25, 26, 27.) that the rebellious obftinacy of
the Jews provoked God to leave them under
a judicial blindnefs, yet one mean of fattening it
upon them is, the doftrine and praBice of
Chrifiians. What muft a thinking Jew con-
clude, from an auto de fe, where he fees, net
only the difciples of Mojes, but thofe alfo who
are the profeffing difciples of J ejus, bound
in one chain, tied to ont /take, and tormented
in the hmefiame? — what, when he reads of
Vol. Ill, T the
[ 274 J
the maffacres of P#r# and of Ireland? — whatr
when he is told, that, above a w//&« and aa
half of reafonable and innocent creatures, in-
cluding all ages, conditions, and sexes, have
drenched the earth with their bloody and all
this, becattfe they refufed to worfhip a piece
of wafer or a log of wood— or to acknowledge
the traditions and dodtrines of men, as above
the teftimony of the fcriptures ?
How fhould the Jews ever give credit to
afyjlem,which contradicts their antient fcrip-
tures ? which lays the holy laws of their Pen-
tateuch in the duft, and treads under foot the
awful majefly, the fuprerne ajsd unrivalled
Sovereignty and authority of Jehovah ? which
tells them, they muft renounce their law-
giver, lord, and king, (fee Maiah xxxiii.
22.), and liften only to men who have over-
turned the whole fabric of their ceconomy,.
with refped: to marriage, and deftroyed thofe
bulwarks which the God of Ifrael raifed, for
the fecurity of their wives and daughters from
feduclion and projiitution? — that the protection
of female chajlity, which their forefathers ex-
perienced, is no longer the objedfc of divine
legiflation; but, that every man is now at
liberty, to ravage, as he can, upon the weaker
'ex, no rejponfibility left, no obligation created,,
no juftice exacted?
How can they endure to hear the taunts of
Chrifiians, on their antient fiatutes? — or bear
with patience to hear the Chrifiians fpeak of
their honoured and venerable anceflors,, as adul-
terers > whoremonger Sy and debauchees?— -licen^
tiates
C *7$ J
tiates in Jin — tolerated in forbidden tewdnefs by
their God — worthy the ftroke of vengeance,
and only fpared from it by divine connivance?
All this, and more, they muft be content to
hear, and to fubmit to, or they muft keep
out of the reach of Chrijiian churchmen, or
fhut their ears and hearts againft them.
So that while Popijh canons, and human taws*
are to lay down principles on which the regu-
lation of the commerce of the Jebces is to depend,
we can entertain no great hopes of men, who,
from the giving of the law at mount Sinai
to this hour, have known no other fyjiem than
that delivered by Mofes, and acknowledge no
appeal from their antient fcriptures, to the
more modern inventions of the Chrijlians.
Another article* eftablifhed on the fore*
going evidence, is the indifcriminate prohibi-
tion of polygamy — this appears in feveral of
the canons which have been cited, and at laft,
by the council of Trent * cent. 16. finally laid
under a judicial curfe. So that, no necejjity of
circumflancesi no ftuation into which a man
already married can be brought — his wife's
infanity — diftemper of body or mind, or other
unavoidable deprivation of her fociety— can turn
the point-blank of this dreadful canon from
the unhappy objects of its vengeance. — The
Protejiants have added to the terror of this
piece of artillery a penal fiat ute, by which po-
lygamy, under what circumftances of necejjity
foever, is prohibited on pain of death.— The
debauchery of the wives of others, the feduc-
tion and ruin of virgins, the incentives to
T 2 procuring
[ *7* J
procuring abortion, the murder of new-borti
infantSy though notorious confequences of
frieftly celibacy, cannot prevail on their fellow-
creatures to fuffer them to marry, and all
thefe, though confequences equally of that
factitious celibacy, which arifes from an indif-
criminate prohibition of polygamy, cannot pre-
vail for the repeal of that law, which makes
it a capital felony for a man to do, what God.
not only allows, but in many cafes- commands y
(fee Exod. xxii. :6. Deut. xxii. 28, 29.) Add
to all this, the driving men into fornication
with harlots, or into other namelefs and num-
berlefs inconveniences, which drown them in
ieftruBion and perdition. This is a tyranny
over the conferences of men, well worthy the
Popr/h inventors of it. It was altogether un-
known to the antient people of God, who lived
under the immediate government of the Di-
vine Law.
But here methinks I hear a Jew fay — •
" Our law has an efpecial care of population*
" and provides againft the extinction of fami-
" lies by barrennefs. — Our father Abraham
" married Sarah, but finding me was barren,
" he took another wife, that he might have
<( children by her, and this by the perfuafion
" of Sarah herfelf. — Our father Jacob alfo
" did the fame at the perfuafion of his wives
" Leah and Rachel." \ — See Gen. xvi. 2. xxx.
.3. 9. " All this is very true, aj*fwer I; but
f* if Abraham had lived among Chrijlians, one
*' fett of them would have curfed and excom-
** munkated him, another would have hanged
" him,
( *77 1
** him, and fent him to the devil into the bar-
" gain; and fo they would have ferved- his
*c grandfon Jacob, and, for aught I know,
fc half his generation"
Another observation is alfo to be made, as
refulting from the foregoing evidence, and
that is, on the fubjedt of concubinage, \yhen
Bucer fays — " legitime etiam erant uxores"—-
" They were alio lawful wives' — 1 firmly
believe him, becaufe the Hebrew Scrip-
tures mention them as fucb. — As for the
New Testament, I do not find any thing
faid about them. The word 7rcLAhav.v\, which
the LXX ufe for the Hebrew (MTMfc and
which we render CGncubine, does not once
occur — therefore this matter muft be con-
feffed to ftznd Jingly and merely on the fcrip-
tures of the Old Teftament.
The church, in the days of Conjlantine,
clearly held, that " the fcriptures ufed the
" word wife and concubine indifferently," and
therefore they would not enter into the dif-
tin&ion which that "Emperor was making,
between marriage and concubinage — the coun-
cil of Toledo, anno 400, wrere of the fame
opinion — and St. AuguflinezMo, who is ftyled
the father of the Latin church, did not differ
from them. — See before vol- i. 32, n.
As the church grew more corrupt, and
churchmen more infolent, and more ambitious
of increaling their dominion over the minds
of men, they confounded all lcripture defini-
tions and ideas of things; and fuffered the
people only to think as they would have them,
% T 3 and
9~
l l *7* i
afld as might beft ferve for the advancement
o^tieftly power. The poor clergy ; who wefc
forbidden to marry, endeavoured to find a re-^
fuge in concubinage, or living with women
which they took as wives, but without the
forms which had been arbitrarily introduced
into the church — however they were driven
out of this, the practice itfelf condemned, by
feveral canons, and, by little and little, concur
binage was looked upon as infamous, and at
length deemed no better than whoredom and
fornication.
That polygamy and concubinage were both
difpenfations of God, both modes of lawful and
honourable marriage, is a propofition as clear
as the Hebrew fcriptures can make it — That
polygamous and concubinary contra&s are deem-
ed by the Chrijlians null and void, and ftamped
with the infamy of adultery and whoredom, is
3S certain as that the canons and decrees of the
church of Rome * rnade them to be fo. — The
* Our having learned from the Papifts, to call poly-
gamy, adultery, and concubinage, whoredom and fornica-
tion— reminds one of the wifdom of that fapient and wor-
thy Town-clerk, in Shakespeare's Much ado about No-
thing, in the examination of Conrade and Borachio—
ift. Watch. This man faid, Sir, that Don John, the
Prince's, brother, was a villain.
To. Clerk.. Write down, Prince John a villain — why,
this is flat perjury, to calf a prince's brother villain.
Sexton. W hat heard you him fay elfe ?
2d. Watch. Marry, that he4had received a thoufand
ducats of* Don John, for accufing the Lady Hero wrong-
fully.
To. Clerk. Flat burglary as ever was committed.
Dogb, Yea, by the mafs, that it is.
confequences
[ 279 J
cpnfcqucnces of the former, were, the pre-
fervation of female chajlity, and the preven-
tion of female ruin — The confequences of
the latter, have been, and ftill are, the de-
flruftion of thoufands of both fexes (but more
efpecially * of the female J in this world and
in the next.
Leigh, Crit. Sacr. fub voc. VftbQ — fays— •
H Concu&ina-uxor. Gen. xxii. 24. and xxv. 6.
*'■ The Hebrew Pilgejh (whereof the Greek
<c TOXXtfKvj and Latin Peilex are borrowed,
" which we call a con cubine 'J 'fignifieth an half*
" wife, or a divided ' znd fewndary ivtfc, which
was a wife for the bed (and thereby differ-
ing from an whore J but not for her our, and
government of the family, lieither had
their children ordinarily any right of in-
•' heritance, but had gifts of their father,
49 (fee Gen. xxv. 6.)" On the margin, Leigh
cites Grotius on Judges xix. i. " ^uidam vo-
u cem compoftam volunt ex fab divifit, &
*' TlfcW uxor* quafi uxor divifa. Nomen He-
brceum honejlius ejl quam Gracum 7roiXKoc\ivif
& Latinum Pel lex, qua tamen inde vene~
€(
4C
it
* After all the rout that has been made about polygam?
and concubinage in the Chrijiian church — the only real
and fubftantial difference between the antient Jews and
the Chrifiiant is this — The former took a plurality of
women, whom they maintained, protected, and provide4
for, agreeably to God's word — the latter take a plu-
rality of women, and turn them out to ruin and deftruc^
tion, not only againft .God's word, but againft every
principle of juftice and humanity. — Or, in other words
if the Jew took as many as he could maintain^ the Ckrif~
tutn ruins as many as he can debauch*
T 4 * nmU
f 280 ]
" runt. Pel lex eft uxorem habentis — con^
" cubina pot eft ^caelibis: neque talis con-
" junclio co?2tra legem & bonos mores erat tilts.
" temporibus"
" Some will have this to be a compound
" word — of && he divided, and HEW a wife
f.' — a divided wife as it were. The Hebrew
" name is of more honeft import than the
" Greek 7nUA#joi, and the Latin Pellex,
" which are however both derived from it.
" Pellex is underftood in Latin to fignify the
" woman who lives with a man that has a
ec wife — Concubina may fignify her who lives
<( with a 'Jingle man" — (Thefe diftinctions,
made by different words, do not occur in the
Hebrew) " nor was fuch a conjunction con-
trary, in thofe times, to law or to good
*f manners.31
The concubines feem to have been ufually of
an inferior rank, as maid-fervants, and the
like, and to have been taken without the for-
mality of dowry, or any other outward cir-
cumftance whatfoever — but ftill they were
certainly efreemed as the property of the man,
as clearly appears from what facob faid,
Gen. xlix 4. and a concubine was frequently
ftyled HEW — a wife. Comp. Gen. xvi. 3. with
Gen. xxv. 6. See alfo Gen. xxx. 4. with
Gen xxxv. 22. xxxvii. 2.
I have before obferved, that concubines are
not once mentioned in the N^w Teftament; fo
that concubinage ft inds entirely on the autho-
rity of the Hebrew fcriptures. Thefe, indeed,
feerru
[ ?8i ]
feem to have been entirely laid afide, and con-
cubinage, after the fourth century ', gradually
became the fmful and abominable thing which
.we are taught to believe it. There is now
no ?nediu?n between whoredom and form >/ mar-
riage— the fame Popijlo dexterity, which con-
verted a piece of wafer into an human body,
and marriage into a facrament, turned a con-
cubine into a whore, and concubinage into a
damnable fin. See before p. 30. and n.
In fhort, concubinage brought no grift to
the mill 1 no licences, difpenfations, afking of
banns, &c. enriched either the Popes coffees,
or the priefYs pocket ; therefore it was found
better, that a poor f educed girl, and the man,
\vho to humour his own pride, or that of his
family, did not chufe the facrament of marri-
age, mould be feparated, andjhe turned adrift,
by " beiir^ baniflied the territory/' he at
liberty to ruin as many more as he could,
without any incumbrance- or expence, and
all thefe to become vagabonds on the fice of
the earth, rather than holy church mould lofe
her prerogative of Jupremacy over the con-
sciences of her votaries ; or thofe darling emo-
luments, of power and wealth, be lefca^d, or
interrupted \ in their increafe.
This has been improved into an artic7e of
faith, and has been the de.Lruift.ion of a^
ma.iy women, as wo :ld put-number the jt
oj heaven, and, in its confequences, of
many unborn and new-lorn infants* as \ /aid
make the infanticides at Bethlehem, 01 Che
tejl's
[ 282 J
friejls of Moloch, comparatively innoeent, if
the numbers deJlrGyed are to be ftandards of
guilt.
Sure thefe themfehes from primitive
And heathen priejlhood do derive,
When butchers were the only clerks^
Elders and prefbyters of kirks :
JVhofe directory was to kill,
Andfome believe it is foJhlL
The only difference is, that then
They flaughter d only beafts, now men :
For then to facrifice a bullock,
Or now and then a child to Moloch,
They count a vile abomination,
But not to Jlaughter a whole nation.
Hud.
It has been before obferved, vol. i. 58, n.
how apt all arbitrary and living languages
are to gain new meanings by length of time,
fome inftances of which are there given, and
many more might be given. Mr. Warton,
in his EJfay on Spencer's Faery Queen, has
obferved, that" — " words, by an impercep-
" tible progreffion, from one kindred fenfc
" to another, at length obtain a meaning
*' entirely foreign to their original etymolo-
V Sy" — ^nc^ indeed they frequently change
from a good fenfe to a bad one. Who would
think the word imp was anciently a title of
royal dignity ? Lord Cromwell, in his laft
letter to Henry VIII. prays for the imp
his fon. So Henry V. is hailed, as
" Royal imp of fame." Now it is only ufed
in contempt or abhorrence, as fignifying an
tvilfpirit — a dczmon. See Steevens and John-
/oris
3
I 283 ]
foris Shakef. vol. ii. 391, n. and vol. v. 607, iv
and Phillips 's Did. fub voc.
Thus has it fared with the words concu*
linage and concubine; — the ideas which have
been annexed to thefe words by the Papijls,
and after hem by the Protejlants, are as
foreign from the fcripture ideas of them, as
it is almoft pcflible for one thing to be
from another. — Concubinage, as reprefented
in the Hebrew fcripture, was evidently one
mode of innocent and lawful marriage, and
concubines were, of courfe, innocent and
lawful wives — legitime? eraizt uxores, faith
Bucer. So late as the fourth century, the
terms wife and concubine were ufed indiffe-
rently. So in the year 400, the council of
Toledo decreed, that — " it was neceflary for
*' every member of the church to fatisfy
*' himfelf either with one wife or one concu-
*$ bine — that he ought not to be excommu-
** nicated who has only a concubine." — As
priejlly benedictions, and other ecclefiaftical
forms and ceremonies of marriage, increafed
by the inventions of men, concubinage was
not only laid afide, but was looked upon as
fynonymous with whoredom and fornication, and
a concubine was treated as a whore: — thfcy cer-
tainly had as much authority for this from
the fcripture, as to have burnt her for a
witch.
Still the thing itfelf, as in God's fight,
remains juft as it did, neither better nor
worfe; for no change can poffibly be wrought
either in the divine mind, or in the facred
language
t 284 1
language in which it is expreiTed. — This mode
of marriage being allowed of God, muft be
concluded to have been for the wijeji reafons,
not the leaft of which feems to have been,
to preferve the lower order of females from
defertion and projlitation (a thing not known
among the antient Jews) but to which they
have been configned by the Chrijtians, with^-
cut mercy or remedy.
I difmifs this part of trie fubjeft, with re-
ferring the reader to Martin Bucers found
and fcriptjiiral thoughts upon it, in the Ap-
fendix to chap. ii. of this work, at the end of
vol. 2.
Another obfervation, which arifes from
the foregoing evidence, is with regard to
tbofe dangerous engines of prie/lcrajt, and
church-tyranny, called, in the Popiffj canons,
ecclejiajlical courts ; which, together with all
their officials , commijfaries, and other officers
thereunto belonging, were the improvements
made by the church of Rome, on the power
granted to bijhops and councils for the internal
administration of the church, by the Emperor
Confiantine* In ihort, when he and his fuc-
ceflbrs became Chrijiians, they thought it
highly for the honour of Chrijiianity, that the
clergy mould be inverted with outward dig-
nities, preheminences, and authorities, fuit-
able to that kingdom of this world which then
began to be erected — or, as I may fay, when
the princes of the empire became Chrijiians,
the Chrijiian churchmen became princes, and
this begot the ecclejiajlical courts > from them
came
[ *SS 1
came the courts of inquifition, and every
other mode of oppreffing mankind, under
colour of law, by ecclefiajlical judges. Thefe
courts, under the jurifdi&ion of the bifiips,
were erected in every diocefe, and, together
with Popery, tranfplanted into this country.
They were the infernal tribunals, which har-
raffed, perfecuted, diftrefled, tortured, and
burnt Protejlants alive, and might do fo ftill,
but for the 29 Car. If. c. 9. which takes
away the writ de heretico combure?ido, yet re-
lerves all other punifhments but death, in as
ample a manner as before the making of the
aB, for " herefy, fchifm, and all other dam-
*• nable doctrines and opinions" But what
thefe are, who can define ? They are vague
defcriptions of offences, concerning which,
mankind are not agreed to this hour, and
yet punifhable by thefe courts, by any eccle-
fiajlical cenfures fliort of death, even to excom-
munication itfelf.
Outlawry in treafon or felony is a civil
death, but excommunication may be called a
death both civil arid ecclefiajlical; and, when
duly confidered for npbat it may be inflicted,
and by whom, and what its conjequences are,
can, in all reafon and fenfe, only be looked
upon as one of the moft barbarous, oppref-
five, and iniquitous engines of church-power,
that the Pope left behind, him, when his im-
mediate fupremacy in this country was de-
ilroyed.
As for what it may be inflicted, it refts
very
I 286 ]
very much in the breads of the ecclefiajlical
judges, according to the conftruftion they
may be pleafed to put on the words — " he-
" refy> fchtfm, and other damnable doctrines
u and opinions y — In fome inftances, in-
deed, there are determinate caufes affigned
of excommunication ipfo 5lo, as the reader
may fee by turning to the " ' mjlitutiom
" and Canons fire ejiajtic a J t r . ce d upon by
cc the convocation 160 .a affij ned /ter-
ward under xhz grea f of England, by
that pious y wife, and patriotu p ince, King
James I.
In the twelve firft canons, the reader will
find no lefs than eleven caufes of excommuni-
cation— nine ipfo facto., not one of whjdh have
the leaft to do with the Bible, or were offences
exifting 'till the inventions of men gave them
birth. There are alib other caufes of excom-
?nunicatio?iy in others of theie laid canons,
which have as little to do with the Bible, as
thofe have which are be ore mentioned.
The laft three canons alfo denounce excom-
munication for caufes unknown to the. fcrip-
tures.
The p erj on by whom, either the fentence of
excommunication y or the excommunication ipfo
faBoy may be awarded, is the ecclefiajlical judge y
who is ufually a layman; and, if prejudiced
again ft the party, or a man of a fevere and
bad temper, may find out interpretative
caufes of excommunication, fo .many and fo
various, as to leave no man fafe : — no jury
interferes
I 287 ]
interferes in the trial of the caufe, no de-
terminate definition of " herefy, fchifm, and
" other damnable doElrines and opinions^1 to di-
rect or confine the judgment — but it ftands
on the breath of a Jingle mortal, to determine
on whom this horrid engine of excommunica-
tion fhall be played off. — Add to this, as all
the proceedings are in writing, a man may
be accufed by a perfon he never knew, and
convidled of the crime laid to his charge,
without ever feeing the face of one of the
witnej/es againft him.
As to the confequences of thefe excommu-
nications, I can hardly fuppofe, that, as to
any Spiritual damage to a man s foul, any per-
fon of common fenfe would trouble his
head about them, or give a brafs farthing for
his abfolution; I am fure, if he did, he would
give more, by all the money, than it is
worth. — But as to the temporal inconvenien-
ces accruing from thefe engines of ecckjiajli-
cal defpotifm, they are certainly very terri-
ble, fo much fo, as to render them very fe-
rious obje&s of our confideration, as a free
and Protejlant people.
There are two forts of excommunication,
called the lejfer and the greater: the leffer is
the depriving the offender of the ufe of the
facraments, and divine worflnp ; and this fen-
tence is pafled by judges ecclejiajlical, on fuch
perfons as are guilty of objlinacy or difobedi-
ence, in not appearing upon a citation, or
UOt fubmitting to penance , or other injunc-
tions
[ 283 J
tions of the court. The greater excominunU
cation, is that, whereby men are deprived,?
not only of the facraments, and the benefit
of divine offices, but of the fociety and conver-.
fation of the faithful — -i. e. of all perfons not
excommunicated.
If a perfon be excommunicated generally;
as if the judge fay—" I excommunicate fuch a
ic perfon" — this fhall be underftood of the
greater excommunication. Lindw. 78. Lind-
'wood fays, that excommunication ipfo facto is —
nullo hominis miniflerio inter veniente — which is
about as equitable as hanging a man without
a trial.
By art. 33, of the church of England,
" that perfon, which, by open denunciation
" of the church, is rightly cut off from the
" unity of the church, and excommunicated,
" ought to be taken of the whole multitude
" of the faithful as an heathen and publican,
€C until he be openly reconciled by penance,
** and received into the church by a judge
" that hath authority thereunto."
By can. 85, " the churchwardens or quejl-
" men efpecially fhall fee, that all perfons
" excommunicated, and fo denounced, be kept
" out of the church" See Burn Eccl. Law,
tit. Excommunication.
The confequences of all this are, that a man
is deprived of the participation of the means
of grace — inhibited the commerce and com-
munion of the faithful — and moreover, after
forty days, the fpiritual court fignifying this
to
[ z89 ]
to the court of Chancery, by jignijicavit , therfr
ilTues a writ de excommunicato capiendo, which
is all but as bad as the Leretico comburendo,
for it caufes the man to be apprehended by
the civil power, and thrown into gaol, where
he may lie 'till he rots> if he has not money
enough to purchafe his letters of abfolution,
as in cafes of excommunication for non-payment
of* cojis, and the like.
Moreover, it is to be obferved, that the
excommunicate perfon is fo far put out of the
protection of the laws of his country, as
that he cannot fue an action real or per-
fonal
He cannot make a laft will and tejla-
ment.
He cannot be an advocate — or a wit??e/s —
nor a juror, if the record of the judgment be
produced.
He cannot a6l as an executor, or profecute
any action for the teftator's goods ; and they
which converfe with an excommunicate perfon
are excommunicate -j- alfo.
And
•
* One of the twenty-eight grievances' complained of to
the Houfe of Commons, anno 1640, was — " the general
" abufe of excommunication, which was inflicted for tri-
" vial matters, and the ahfolution whereof could not be
" obtained without money." Another — " the great
<c abufe of ecclefiaftical courts." — See Rapin, vol. ii. 361.
t Let it be obferved, that all thefe mifchiefs may be-
fal a man, who is neither guilty of a breach of any re-
vealed lata of God — nor of the known law of the land —
no part of this can the canons be reckoned, as the
higheft fanclion- which they ever obtained, was that of
the great feal. — How then is imprifonment of an En?lift>
Vol. III. U f«bjea,
[ 290 ]
And that they may he- devil a man to the
uttermoft, it is ordered, by can. 68, that a
mnijler is to be fufpended for three months,
who affords Chriflian burial to a perfen, again ft
whom the court- chriflian (for lb the ecclejiaf
tical court is fometimes called, as the court
of inquifition is called the houfe of mercy — as
lucus a non lucendo — ) hath pronounced the
* greater excommunication, which may be
done by the fingle voice of the judge, only
faying — u / excommunicate fucb a one," and
that, for offences which have no foundation,
but in the uncertain conftruftion of vague
and indeterminate human words, or in the
canons of the church, which are the pure in-
ventions of an ecclefiajlical Jynod, and framed,
as near as may be, to fave appearances, to the
canons of the church of Rome.
Surely fuch powers as thefe are too great
to be trufted in the hands of any -man, and are
. fubjecl, under excommunication for offending againft
theie canons, confiitent with that axiom in the grand
charter of Englijb freedom, c. 29. — " Nullus liber hopio
46 capiaiur yel imprifonetur, Sec. mc fuper eum ibimus, nee
*€t fuper eum mitt emus, nifi per legale judicium parium fuc-
4< rum vd per legem terra." — kt No free man mall be
46 taken or imprifoned, 5cc. nor we will not pafs upon
44 him nor condemn him, bur by lawful judgment of his
44 peers, or by the law cf the land?
* The church of Rome is rather more charitable in
this buflnefs; for it has a — " Rhus abfohendi excommu-
46 nicatum poft mortem' — " A rite of abfolving an ex-
44 communicate perfon after death," — and if buried,
they will dig him up again for this purpofe, provided
he fhewed a Ggn of contrition on his departure. — The
ceremony cf' liberation and abfolution, together with
all the reft of the farce, is in the Rituale Romanum.
fuch
[ 29r 1
foch as are too inimical to public liberty ariti
fafety, to be fuffered to exift any where, much
lefs in a free and Protejlant country While
the Pope was fupreme head of the church of
Engl end, had fet himfelf above all law, and
could caufe a learned, brave, and great king
(Henry II.) to be flogged by a parcel of rai-
cally monks, at Thomas a Becket's tomb, like
a thief %X a cart's tail — could lay whole king-
doms under an interdict, and caufe the kings
of the earth to be excommunicated, amd depofed
and murdered by their fubjeBs — one can ac-
count for the people of this infatuated coun-
try's fubmitting to the ecclefiajlical tyranny of
the Spiritual courts — but furely, after above
two centuries have paffed fince the banifhment
of the Pope, it is high time for us to reflect
as to the fituation we are in, with refpect to
thefe dreadful .tribunals.
I have before, (vol. i. p. 6y) fpoken of
thefe courts, and called their power " very
*' feeble' — this mult be underflood in a com-
parative fenfe, to what it was before the abo-
lition of the high commifjioii court, by 16
Car. I. c. ii. — the taking away the writ
de hceretico comburendo, by 29 Car. II. c. 9.
—and the palling that truly Chriftian law,
commonly called the toleration- adt, 1 W.
and M. c. 18. — but there is flill power enough
left, to make the fubjecls of this kingdom
tremble for what may happen, in lefs mo-
derate times than thofe we live in.
What offences can poffibly arife, which a
temporal judge, and a jury of twelve men,
U 2 cannot
[ 292 1
cannot punifh ? What evils, which they can-s
not properly and duly rjr animadvert upon ?
Or what laws can be imagined, which they
cannot execute, on the constitutional prin-
ciples of a fair and open trial on viva voce
evidence, and on the words of determinate
and certain ftatutes ? \\ hy are * wills and
tejl anient s, matrimonial caujes, and other mat-
ters of a temporal nature, to be configned
into the hands of ecclefiajlical judges ? — I
can give no other reafcn, than that the
Pope wrefted them out of the hands of the
civil powers, and placed them there; which,
hy the way, is no bad reafon for their be-
ing reftored to the civil power again.
Much has b^en faid, and much more
t " As St. Paul thought that men might lead quiet and
cc peaceable live:, in all godlincfs and honejly, under pro-
** per fubjection to, and coercion of the civil magiftrate,
" I do not fee that I fhould be afhamed to think fo too."
ConfeJfior.aU 3°" edit. 231.
* " The probate of teflaments did not originally be-
*f long to the ecclefiajlical jurifdiction, but to the county
cc court, or to the court baron of the refpedtive lord oj the
"• manor where the teflator died, as all other matters did."
2 Bac. Abr. 398.
" The truth \s, there were wills before there was any
cc ecclefiafiical jurifdiciion, and confequently the cog-
<c nizance thereof pertained then folely to the civil ma-
" giftrate." See Burn, Eccl. Law. tit. Wills.
The truth of all i?, that papal ufurpation flopped at
nothing, which could encreale the wealth, or gratify
the ambition of churchmen. When the Pope fent his fu-
perftition into this country, by Auflin the monk, his
power followed hard after it, and laid its hands on
what it pleafed, none daring to refift. This is the
true original of throwing matrimonial and tejlamentary
caufes into the hands of ecclefiajlical judges. See Tl^e-
lyph. vol. ii. p. 141, 2d edit.
might
[ 293 1
might be faid on the fubjedt; but how we
can call ourfelves Proteftants, or boaft of
our being a free people, while we are un-
der this imperium in imperio, I cannot con-
ceive— therefore, as the parliament of England
aboliihed the high commiffion court, by 16
Car. I. c. ii, it would be an aB becoming
an age of ftill greater Protejiant liberty, to
annihilate every power of churchmen to do
mifchief and leave them no other, than that
of doing good.
Another obfervation which may be made
on the foregoing evidence, relates more im-
mediately to the fubjects of thefe volumes; I
mean, the contrivances of the Popifh canon-
law, to blind people from the real and true
nature of marriage ; to make them believe
that it confifts in an outward ceremony, which
man has invented, and not in that perfonal
union which God ordained at the beginning;
and, of courfe, to throw nullity, and even
infamy, on the latter ; thus to ft rip it of all
vbligation and validity,, and by thefe means,
leaving the feduction and dereliction of vir-
gins wholly in the power of their betrayers.
To this the church, the priejl, and the other
religious formalities, have fo greatly con-
tributed, that neither Papift nor Protejiant
have the leaft doubt upon the fubject. —
The Papift calls his prieft's legerdemain
the form of the facra?nent, but the facra-
ment itfelf is the union created by the Ego
jango vos, &c. The Protejiant will tell
Us, that an outward ceremo?iy is the form
U 3 of
[ 294 ]
of the marriage, but that the marriage i'tieii
confifts in the union arifing from certain
words fpoken in Englijh inftead of Latin.
— Without this there is no marriage, as both
will confefs ; therefore both equally make
marriage to co.nfift in: fomething, which, fo
far from being of the ejjence of it, is not fo
much as mentioned, ov even hinted at, through-
out the whole word of God, no, not even as
the moft diftant ciieumflance attending upon,
it.
We are encouraging the revival and im-
provement of the liberal arts ; painting, fculp-
ture, rnufic, and other ornaments of civil fo-
ciety, meet with their patrons and promo-
ters ; Jchooh and academies are ere&ed, and bu-
fily employed, in the more noble and ufeful
researches of navigation, ajlrGnomy, and their
concomitant^a'cw^; how is it then, that we
are, with regard to the important fubj.ects of
thefe volumes, contented to remain where
the dawning of the Reformation left us, partly
delivered, partly retained in the hands of that
fuperfiition, fo much of which our firft re-
formers fhook off? — how is it, that the mi-
fries cf ruined females have little other effect
upon us, than to provoke our contempt, or
fometimes, perhaps, excite our pity? — Will
— ci be ye warmed" — relieve them from the
winter s cold? — or — " be ye clothed" — cover
their nakednefs? — Why not fearch into the
records of everlfing truth, to fee whether
there is not a folid proviiion made againft their
diflreffes — fome mighty bulwark raifed for
their-
t 295 ]
theif fecurity and protection — fome remedy
provided againfl: the crying, ruinous, and de-
ftruclive evil of public projlitntion ? If there
be fuch things — let them be brought forth
into open daylight, let them be proclaimed on
the houfe-tops — had we Virgil's
Lingua centum — oraque centum
let them be all employed upon the glorious,
falutary fubjedt- — let Protejlant legiflation de-
flroy Popijh encroachment -, let it adopt the
laws of Heaven for its guide — rendering unto
Cafar the things that are Cafar s, and unto
God the things which are God's. — Thus
making marriage what God has made it — in
its nature, end, and obligation ; and confirming
all thefe, by fuch laws of thejlate, as may in-
fure, by outward recognition, what has
been commanded and eftablifhed by hea-
venly and DIVINE INSTITUTION.
From the foregoing long feries of evidence
it likewife appears, whence has been derived
the whole art and myftery of fn-making, and
unmaking it again, by human contrivance—
al fo faint- making — crofs - making — creed- mak -
ing — the confecration of days and feafons — «
framing calendars, which,, like the Fajli of
Heathen Rome, are filled with obfervances of
fuperftitious veneration in honour of dead
men and women. — The Heathen had their Dii
major um gentium, and their Dii minor um — their
Gods, Demigods, and Heroes — Chriftian church-
men regiftered their Lady * the Virgin Mary —
* Annunciation of Our Lady. See Eng, Kah of
proper lejfons*
U 4 angels—
[ 296 ]
angels — ap ojiles — faints — martyrs — confejfors
— and each of thefe had his day on which he
\\ms to be worshipped.
We likewife find the true origin of thofe
uncommanded and humanly-invented rites
and ceremonies, which corrupted the fimpli-
city of the divine ordinances, obfeured the
true nature of divine institutions , and fixed
the eyes of Chriflians, not on what God had
ordained, but on what men had inve?ited.
Thefe were guarded, in the rnoft tremen-
dous manner, by the ecclejiajiical powers,
againft all contradiction and innovation. —
Many inftances of this we have already met
with — but let us hear the Council of Trent,
Sell*. 7. Can. 13.
" Si quis dixerit, receptos & approbatos ec-
" clelias Catholics ritus in folemni facramen-
" toruiri adminiftratione adhiberi confuetos,
" aut contemni, aut fine peccato a miniftris
" pro libitu omitti, aut in novos alios per
" quemcumque ecclefiarurn paftorem mutari
" porTe — anathema fit \"
" If any one fhall fay that the received
<e and approved rites of the Catholic church,
" which are wont to be ufed in the folemn
tc adminiftration of the facraments, are to
" be contemned, or, without fin, can be
" omitted at the will of the minifter, or can
f* be changed for other new ones by any
•* pallor of the churches — let him be ac-
" CURSED."
Now let us hear the Protefiant church of
England, Can. 4.
" Whofocver fhall hereafter affirm, that
" the
[ 297 ]
t€ the form of God's worfhip in the church
u of England, eftablifhed by law, and con-
%i tained in the book of the Common Prayer,
M and adminiftration oi J acr anient s, is a cor-
€C rupt, fuperftitious, or unlawful worfhip of
" God, or containeth any thing in it that is
" repugnant to the fcriptures, let him be
€€ excommunicated ipfofaBo, and not re-
" ftored, but by the bijhop of ihe place, or
" archbijhop, after his repentance, and public
" revocation of fuch his wicked errors"
Can. 6. Exhibits a like fentencqagainft —
" Impugners of the rites and ceremonies efta-
" blifhed in the church of 'England " — Ex-
COMMUNICATION tpfofaffo.
So we fee, that, as the Papifls curse the
Protejiants, the Proteftants curse one another
—and all this, for matters entirely of human
invention. — Surely this is a likely way to re-
concile our dijfenting Protcjlant brethren to
the church as by law eftablifhed! and to con-
vince infidels, that when they laugh at us all
for a parcel of 'fools, they are very much in the
wrong !
As to marriage, the Romijb ritual fays —
" Parochus — Noverit ex probatis auctori-
" bus, qux fint canonica impedimenta ma-
" trimonii contrahendi, & qus contraclum
" dirimant : & qui fint gradus confanguini-
u tatis & affinitatis, & item cognationis fpi-
" ritualis ex baptifmi vel confirmationis fa-
" cramento contracts :
" Habeat imprimis ipfe bene cognitaprs-
n cepta ilia omnia, qu# in matrimoniis rite
" conficiendis-
[ 298 J
" conficiendis fervari oportere, facri canones,
<c et prascipue fancta iynodus Tridcntina
" juffit, dabitque operam, ut ilia in parochia
" fua accurate exacteque ferventur."
u Let the pari/h priejl know, from ap-
" proved authors, what are the canonical im-
" pediments of contracting matrimony, and
" what things may acftroy the contract : and
" what are the degrees of affinity and con-
" fanguinity, alfo of fpiritual relationfhip,
" contracted by the facrament of baptifm or
€t confirmation.
*« Lei: him, above all things, be well ac-
" quainted with all thofe precepts which
<c ought to be kept, in rightly and duly per-
" forming marriages, according to the facred
" canons, and efpecially according to what
" the holy fynod of Trent commanded. And
" he mall do his endeavour, that thefe mall
M be accurately and exactly kept within his
" parim."
We find here particularly, as before in ge-
neral, from whence we derive our notions of
fending people to canons, lear?ied authors, and
acls of parliament, to be taught what are or
are not impediments to marriage ; as likewife
how totally the ant tent laws of Jehovah, re-
lative to what does or does not make a valid
marriage in His fight, are camiered and laid
out of the quejlion—zrui how the ordinances
of men are fubftituted in the place of the in-
ftitutions of God.
There is another claufe in the Romi/h ritual*
which, compared with the preceding evi-
dence,
{ 299 ]
dence, mows haw fecond marriages of all forts
have, through a long fucceffion of ages, met
with the diiapprobation of the church.
" Caveat etiam parochus ne quando con-
" juges in primis nuptiis benedidionem ac-
" ceperint, eos in fecundis benedicat, live
" mulier, five etiam vir ad fecundas nuptias
" tranfeat: fed ubi ea viget confuetudo, ut
" li mulier nemini unquam nupferit, etiam-
" fi vir aliam uxorem habuerit, nuptias be-
" nedicantur, ea fervanda eft. Sed viduse
f4 nuptias non benedicat, etiamfi ejus vir
" nunquam uxorem duxerit."
" Let the prieji alfo beware, left, when
iC married perfons have in former nuptials
" received the benediction, he confer it on
" them in fecond nuptials, whether a woman,
iC or even a man, parTes on to a fecond mar-
" riage. But where the cuftom prevails,
*c that, if a woman has never been married
<c before, though the man has had another
" wife, the nuptials mall be blejfed, there
" that cuftom fhall ftand. But he mall not
" blefs the nuptials of a widow, although
" the man (he marries never had another
" wife,"
If it be afked, by what authority is all
this ? — I anfwer, by as good authority as we
refufe the benediction to a man who has a wife
in a mad-houfe, and who marries another to
keep himfelf out of a brotheL Or to one
who was to do the fame becaufe he had de-
tected his wife in adultery, and could not af-
ford to pay the monflrous expence of an ad:
of
[ 3°° 1
of parliament to divorce her. Or to others
who are as juftly and unavoidably feparated,
-as if their wives were dead.
In fTiort, it is needlefs to cite any more au-
thorities to prove, that the ideas which the
fcriptures have given us of marriage, in all
the forms in which it appeared under the im-
mediate difpenfation of God, have long been
changed into a very different fyjlem> and that
our fentiments of the matter are to be en-
tirely regulated by the contrivances of mor-
tals, and not by the unerring rule of God's
law. But when we confider the mifchiefs
with which this is attended, in the defolation
and ruin of the weaker fex, and that all the
inventions of human wit and wifdom are ut-
terly difproportionate to the tafk of finding
out a remedy, we ought to confefs — that
" we have committed two evils, in forfaking
4i Jehovah, the fountain of living waters,
" and hewing out unto ourf elves cijlerns, broken
t€ cijlerns, that can hold no water" Jer. ii. 1 3.
The Papijls, as we have before feen, teach,
that " marriage is a facrament of the New
<c Teftament, ordained by Christ, and tf^ra-
ce priated to Cbrijlians." — This we deny in
words-, but how diftant our Jyjlem is from it,
or how different in truth and in fact, or how
effentially more conformable to the Bible, re-
quires a much more diilinguifhing head than
I can boaft of to define.
My friend, the honeft Quaker, fays — that
— " a cat in a window is like a cat out of a
" window!'*- What he means by this I leave
9 to
[ 3QI ]
to the reader to determine, as well as what
he means by affirming —
" That, if two men were to fit down to
ft write zgloff'ary, in which the EngliJJj words —
f ' Marriage — Whoredom — Fornication — Poly*-
" gamy — Concubinage — Divorce, &c. — were
" to be explained ; — werethefe writers to be
u {hut up apart in different rooms, one with
fc the Popijh Jyftem> as fet forth in the deter-
" minations and decrees of Popes, councils,
" fynods, &c. of the church of Rome —
" the other with the Jlatutes at large, the
*' " conjiitutions and canons ecclefiajlical" and
M other muniments of this Protejlant coun-
4< try — and both thefe men honeftly and
ft fairly adhered to their feveral patterns; —
" they would, when they came forth, pro-
4C duce works fo like one another, and fo un-
" like the fcriptures, as to make one fufpect
fi (as has been thought of Ptolo?nys feventy
" interpreters) that though the writers ap-
fc p.ared to have been feparated, yet they
M muft have had fome communication to-
" gether, though fo fecret as not to be dif-
f? covered."
As Rome was not built in a day, fo neither
could it be demolijhed in a day. — The Protec-
tant Reformers did much towards its demo-
lition, but they could not do all. — The pre-
judices which they had to encounter, the
oppofition and perfecution which they en-
dured, the controverfies they were engaged
in, and many other things which were inse-
parable from their peculiar fituatjon, ought
rather
[ 3°2 3
father to make us wonder that they got fo
far as they did, rather than be furprized that
they got no farther.
When henry VIII. quarrelled with the
Pope, he yet by no means quarrelled with
Popery, as the fix bloody articles, which were
the ground of that antichriftian and bloody
law, ji H. VIII. c. 14. intituled, " An aft
" for abolishing of diverfity of opinions in
" certain articles concerning Chrijtian rcli-
** gion" fully fhew, — Other laws, which
took the fupreme power in ecckfiaftical mat-
ters out of the hands of the Pope, threw it
into the hands of the King ; and good care
was taken that the hierarchy under Henry VIIL
fhould have all powers of co-operation with
his Majejly, as they had before with his HolU
nefs. — The kingdom in the next reign (of
Edward VI.) afflimed the name of Protefiant
with much more colour of title than in the
preceding-*- Queen Mary's acceffion bid fair
to undo all again ; — but in the long reign of
her fucceflbr Queen Elizabeth, the Protefiant
eftablifhment gained that ftrength and firm-
nefs, which it acquired by fundry laws made
in its favour ; and was ftill more eftablifhed
at the glorious Revolution, when the State
found it neceffary to guard, in the ftrongeft
manner, again ft the danger of the return
of Popery, in the perfon of a Popifh Preten-
der.
Still marriage, and all things relative there-
to, were dependent on thofe opinions of men,
which had been the ground of antient canons,
and
[ 3°3 3
and other laws concerning them. — In many
great and important articles of religion, the
reformers had a&ed upon the great Protejiant
axiom, that M the fcriptures are the only rule
H of faith" — As to the rites and ceremonies
of the church, theie remained, with a very
ftrong mixture of the old ones, which had
been eftablifhed before the Reformation — ■
therefore all fimilarity between them and
thofe of the church of Rome, muft be account-
ed for, partly from the early * prejudices of
the compilers, partly from the influence,
which a more coniiderable alteration muft
have had, on certain very lucrative emolu-
ments ariling to the church, from things re-
maining in their prefent form. — Henry VIII.
faw how much it was for his own intereft to
keep marriage within the power of human
* That mafterly writer, the author of the Confjfional,
fur nifties me with words to exprefs what I mean.
On this irate of the cafe, it appears that the matter
of complaint does not affect, the fathers of the Refor-
mation, by far fo much as their fons and fuccejfors,
*' Our firft Reformers were befet with their own and
iC other men's prejudices, to a degree that rendered them,
-" in a great meafure, incapable of conviction. It was
<c next to impoflible to convince them, that their efta-
4t blifhed confeflions of faith" [and fo their notions,
doubtlefs, on many other fubjeclsj " were unchriftiaii
*4 impofitions, for which there was no juft authority,
tC when they had the early practice of the Chrijlian
<c church to appeal to, long before the tyrannical fpirit
M of Rome prevailed. Their veneration for antiquity
" prevented their feeing that thefe very precedents were
" fome of thefteps by which the Papal power afcended
<< to its height, and arrived at the plenitude of its ufur-
*' pation." ConfeJJional, 3d edit, p, 27.
5 legiflation,
cc
a
at
[ 3C4 ]
legiflation, and to model it as he liked, for
his own convenience ; and it is moil proba-
ble, that the clergy would not have made it
very eafy for his Protejiant fucceffbrs, had they
been inclined to it, to have wrefted fo \ pro-
fitable a branch of clerical profit and impor-
tance out of their hands. Hence it is, that
things " are as they are ;" and there is no
great
f Mr. Vincent Alsop (the famous author of
Anti-Sozzo) in his Melius Inquirendum, p. 68. on that
pofition, " that no reformation can be made, but what
will notably diminijh the revenues , grandeur, and credit
of the church" — obferves, " that whatever have been
the fpecious pretences, this has been ther^/obftruclion
of effectual reformation \ Kings and Parliaments have
*c always been inclinable towards a redrefs of exorbi-
** tancies, but the covetoufnefs and pride of churchmen
** have ever impeded their pious endeavours. A Par-
<c liament in Queen Elizabeth's reign, as we read in
*c Dr. Fuller 's Church Hiftory, was bringing in a bill
againft pluralities, and archbimop/^/r^z// fends a letter
to her majefty, fignifying, that they were all undone,
horfe and foot, if it palled. Obferve how he deplores
the miferable ftate of the church — The wo full and dif-
irejpd JJaie into which we are like to fall, forceth us,
with grief of heart, in mojl humble manner, to crave your
<c majejly s mojl fovereig?i protection.— -Why, what is the
<c matter ? — were they making a law againft preaching?
" No. — Or againft common-prayer? By no means! —
4C What ails then the diftreiTed man ? Why — we, there-
4i fore, not as direclors, but as humble remembrancers, be-
" feech your highnefs's favourable beholding of Gur pre fail
<c ft ate, and what it will be in time, if the bill aga
*' pluralities Jhould take place. — No queftion it muir
iC be utter extirpation of the Chrijlian religion.
Ci Thus, in another letter to the fame J^hieen, he com-
<c plains, with lamentations >that would foften an heart
*c of marble — that, they have brought in a bill giving
" liberty to marry at all times of the year without re-
*' Jlraint, — Well, but if men be obnoxious to the evil
" at
t 3°5 1
great likelihood they fhould undergo the leafl
alteration, till we are thoroughly awakened
to a fight and fenfe of the deplorable confe-
quences of our prefent fyjlem (where adultery
goes without duepunifhment, zn&fe duff ion vz-
mains without all obligation from the feducer
to the feduced ) and we ferioufly wifh to re-
form tne deplorable ftate of things, by the
pattern delivered in the Mount j I mean, by
thofe most righteous laws which the
God of Heaven revealed, for the moral go-
vernment of his reafonable creatures, in that
moft important of all things in this world —
the commerce of the fexes.
cc at ell rimes of the year, why mould they not ufe the
cc remedy which God hath appointed at all times of the
11 year ? The Apojlle, who tells us — // is better to marry
" than burn, did not except any time of the year. But
<c why may not a Parliament make a law, as well as
cc the EcclefiajUcal Court give a licence, that it mail be
•* lawful to marry at any time of the year ? Ay — but
<c the Parliament will make the law for nothing, whereas
<c thofe other will have money Jox their licences. But
" he proceeds — It is^cuntrary to the old canons con-
iC tinually obferved by us. Why, but is it not co?i-
" trary to the old canons to take money for a licence?
iC Yes ! — but — it tendeth to the fonder of the church, as
<c having hitherto maintained an error. And now you
<c have the bottom of the bag : all reformation mufb
<c touch the clergy, either in their credits or profits, and it
" were better never to put an hand to that work, thai*
u touch either of thofe with a little finger." p. 69*
Vol. fit X INTRO-
[ 3*6 ]
INTRODUCTION TO CHAP. XIV.
M
R. Locke, b.ii. c. 33, " Of theaffoci-
rrationofj&0r9"ob(erves,that — (liteme
of our ideas have a natural correlponden^e
and connexion one with another : it is the
ornce and excellency of our reafon to
trace thefe, and hold them together in that
union and ccrreipondence which is found-
ed in their peculiar beings.
u Belides this, there is another connexion
of ideasy wholly owing to chance or cui-
tom : ideas, that in themielves are not at
all of kin, come to be lb united in fome
men's minds, that 'tis very hard to feparate
them : they always keep company, and the
one no fconer comes into the understand-
ing, but its affociate appears with it ; and
if they are more than two, the whole gang,
always inieparabie, ihew themfelves toge-
ther.
" This connexion in our minds, of i
in themielves looie, and independent of one
another, is of lb great force to fet us awry
in our actions, as well moral as natural,
pafnons, reaibnings, and notions them-
ielves, that perhaps there is not any one
thing that deierves more to be looked af-
ter. Thus the ideas of goblins znd Jp;i
have really no more to do with darknels
than light ; yet let but a fooiiili maid in-
culcate thefe often on the mind of a child,
and raife them there together,, poffibly he-
ihall never be able to ie ;hcm a^
f 3°7 1
** fo long as he lives, but darknefs (hall ever
c* afterwards bring with it thofe frightful
" ideas.
" Some fuch wrong combinations of ideas
" will be found to eflablifh the irreconcile-
" able oppofition between different fedts of
" philofophy and religion; for we cannot
" imagine every one of their followers to
*4 impofe wilfully on himfelf, and knowingly
" refufe truth offered by plain reafon. That
<{ therefore which captivates their reafons,
" and leads men of fincerity blindfold from
** common fenfe, will, when examined, be
" found to be what we are fpeaking of:
iC fome independent ideas are, by education,
rc cuftom, and the conftant din of their
fi party, fo ooupled in their minds, that they
u always appear there together, and they can
*' no more feparate them in their thoughts,-*
" than if they were but one idea ; and they
" operate as if they were fo.
" This gives fenfe to jargon, demonftra-
•' tion to absurdities, and coniiftency to hon-
" fenfe, and is the foundation of the greater!:,
" I had almoft faid of all the errors in the
u world : or, if it does not reach fo far, is at
M lead the moft dangerous one, fince, fo far
c< as it obtains, it hinders men from feeing
" and examining the confulion of two djf-
<c ferent ideas, which a cuftomary connexion
€t of them in their minds hath to them in ef-
" feci made but one,and cannot but fill men's
l< heads with falfe views, and their reafon-
*' ings with falfe confequences."
On the principles of this great man, man/
X 2 thin 23
.i
[ 3°8 ]
things arc to be accounted for, which other-
wife are unaccountable. When one looks
(for inftance) into the ordinance of the Cre-
ator, by which the human fpecies is to be
propagated and preferved — when we confider
the fimple ground of union, as repfefented
Gen. ii. 24, and the confequence drawn from
it by the great interpreter of the law — Matt,
xix. 5, 6 — we muft afcribe the independent
ideas, which, by long cuftom and ufage, have
united themfelves in the minds of men con-
cerning marriage, to their having been in-
culcated from early infancy, by others, who
themfelves have come by them in the fame
way ; and thus having been delivered over,
fihce their coinage in the church of Rome,
from generation to generation, they ftand in
the public opinion as fo many abfolute and
demonftrable truths : whereas, not a fingl*
trace of them is to be found in the Bible ,
neither religious perfons, nor religious outward
ceremonies, have any more to do with the ef-
fence or validity of the marriage-union in
God's fight, than darknefs has to do with
fprights and goblins, or the fign of the' crofs,
Or godfathers and godmothers, have to do with
the ordinance of bdptifm. — The neceffity of
an outward contract does not therefore afife
from any command of God, fo as to make
the union null and void, or iinful, without
it ; but from caufes of the moft difgraceful
nature, and which are owing to the dreadful
departure of mankind from truth and juflice,
and from that reverence and obedience to the
Creator's
[ 3°9 J
Creator's appointments, which it was once
the honour and happinefs, and muft be for
ever the duty, of man to pay them.
CHAP. XIV.
Of the true Origin and Necessity of
Marriage -Ceremony.
THE invention of marriage- ceremonies, is
as great a proof of the depravity and
.corruption of human nature, as the invention
of written bonds and obligations under band
andfealy they alike prove., that they are the
effects of that neceffity, which mankind la-
boured under, to fecure themfelves againft
the villainy, treachery, and deceit of one
another. Was the v^orld what it ought to be,
no obligation, be fide that of confeience, would
be neceffary for the fecurity of men, with re-
gard to any kind of bargains which they could
make with each other. The man who lent
another a fum of money, though without
any other witneffes to the traniaction than
the parties themfelves, would be perfectly fe-
cure, perhaps more fo than he is now, with
a bond duly ftamped, and fealed, and de-
livered by the hand of the obligor, in the
prefence of witneffes. — If we afk whence arofe
thofe voluminous fecurities, known in our
law by the names of marriage-fettlements ,
mortgage- deeds, zn&fpecialties of various kinds?
it may be anfwered, " From men's being
" afraid to truft one another without them."
X 3 The
[ 31° 1
The very fame principle firfk gave birth to
outward marriage-ceremony, the fimple injli-
tution of Heaven would have been as fuffi-
cient to have bound the parties to each other
at this hour, as it was in the days of inno-
cence, had not the corruption of human na-
ture deftroyed the influences of jujlice, mercy,
and truth within the human foul. The ad-
ventitious circumftances of human ceremony,
on this account, became neceflary; and^ as the
world increafed, and villainy of all kinds in-
creafed, the means of fecurity againft it has
at all times exercifed the invention of legijla-
ture, and employed the vigilance of the exe-
cutive power, in order to obviate the mifchiev-
ous effedts of it.
But what a ftrange thing would it be to
hear, that a bond, on paper, ftamped with
a ftamp of fuch a value, and fealed and de-
livered in the pretence of witnefles, and not
the fum of money lent, raifed the duty in the
obligor's confcience to pay it ? and what a
confcience muft that man have, who looks
upon an outward fecurity as the only reafon
for acknowledging ajuftdebt? yet this is the
language of mankind with refpect to marri-
age-, the debt of 'jujiice, arifing from the com-
mand of God, is all eafily fet afide, and no-
thing is looked upon as obligatory but the
outward bond. To fay, that this is lefs a
mere civil contraEl than the other, is faying
what is not true, and is the great advantage
which has been taken of men's underfland-
ings in the bufinefs of marriage, to the no
frnall emolument of thofe that have taken it,
and
[ 3» ]
and to the diftrefs and deftru&ion of millions
that have iuffered by it.
Again, let us fuppofe the whole body of
attorneys, co?iveyancers, &c. banding together
to perfuade mankind, that the doctrine of
conveyances by leafe and relea/e, by way of
mortgage* and this farther ftrengthened by
levying fines ai?.d fuffering recoveries , in cafes
of intailed ejiates, came from bidvehi and that
no man was obliged in confcience to be an-
fwerable for a fum of money which he had
borrowed, unlefs he employed a conveyancer,
and fet his hand and feal tojixty large fkins
of parchment; and that if he borrowed mo-
ney without this, and dared to pay it, he
would be damned — wre fhould here fee a lively
j
emblem of what churchmen have taught us
upon the fubject of marriage ~ c er e mony : — as
the lawyers would place the fole obligation
of payment in their wax and parchment, and
in the chicane of their art, and not in the
command of Heaven " to render to all their
" due-" fo churchmen have placed the whole
marriage-obligation in an outward ceremony,
and not in the command of God, " they Jball
** be one flejh" — they have let loofe all obli-
gation whatsoever arifing from this command,
infomuch that it is under pain and peril of
damnation, that a man dares peril ft in it, un-
lefs the priej} accounts him reslus in curia,
and can bring him to Jign znA/feal by an out-
ward ceremony, which, under certain circum-
ftances, is impoffible, becaufe human laws
have made it fo.
X 4 Nov/,
[ 312 1
Now, what a bond, or mortgage, is by way
of fecurity for money, that a marriage-cere-
mony is, by way of fecurity with regard to
marriage: and as a man who lends another
a fum of money has a right to demand a
proper fecurity for the repayment of the
debt, principal and intereft; fo has every
woman aright to demand the fecurity of fuch
ceremony as the laws of her country have
ordained, with refpect to the man who has
f educed her — God has in effect com-
manded it, Exod. xxii. 16. and therefore
the fevered penalty ought to be inflicted
On the man who refufes it. The woman
who delivers her perfon into the pofTeffion
of a man, without the ceremony firffc per-
formed, does not act a * cautious, proper, or
* Some may perhaps think, that I have fpoken here
too mildly of fuch an act, and that I fhould have intro-
duced the epithzt finful among the reft; but, as I fee no
tranfgreffion of any law of God in the matter, and am told
that where there is no law there is no tranfgrejfion, I dare
iiot adopt fo -pernicious a tenet, as to call that Jinful, which
God commanded with a blcjjing. See Gen. i. 28, and
again Gen. ii. 24. See before vol. i. chap. 2. paragr.
1 and 2.
If mortals have entirely changed the difpenfations and
ordinances of God, into fyftems of their own invention,
this can have no fort of effect on the real and determi-
nate nature of good and evil as defined in the holy firip-
iures. For my own part, I am moft perfectly convinced,
that the fear and Jhame, which the pernicious tenet above
hinted at hath by cuftom brought on the mother, hath,
in numberlefs inftances, occafioned the murder of the
child; and therefore it may well be termed pernicious, in
the moft emphatical fenfe of the word. See before, index
to vol. ii. tit. Child-murder. See alfo the doctrines
6»f the Albigcnfes and Lollards, before p. 243.
wife
t 313 ]
wife part; any more than the man who lends
a large fum of money without the due exe-
cution of the bond or mortgage -deeds ; hut he
who can take an undue advantage, in either
cafe, muff be a villain in grain. In the mo-
ney- affair, he would be thought fo, and treat-
ed as fuch — a court of juftice would be open
to the injured, and redrefs afforded; but in
the other cafe, though a villainy attended
with irreparable mifchief, the very law itfelf\
as it now ftands, bars all redrefs, configns the
wretched female to deftruction, and leaves the
man, to ruin as many more women as he can
deceive.
All this is owing to our following the Po-
pifo plan, which has been fo much fet forth
at large in the former part of this volume ;
owing to this it is, that we make marriage-
ceremony what it is not, and do not make mar-
riage it/elfwhat it really is.
Our lawyers can well diftinguiih between
that which raifes'the debt or obligation, and
that which is the fecurity for the payment of
the one, or for the performance of the other.
Our cafuijls would find little difficulty in
determining, that a man is equally bound in
confcience to pay a fum of money which he
has borrowed, whether the lender has taken
a written fecurity for it, or whether he has
not; or whether the money was lent before
an hundred witnefles, or only when the lender
and borrower were alone in private.
•Now, let what has been faid be taken all
together, and let none charge the author with
depreciating
[ 3H 1
depreciating thcfe fecurities which men tak$
of one another for the payment of moneys
let none fay he wants to diminifli the public
revenue by what he has faid on the fubjecl
of bonds, and other deeds, which carry Jlamps;
or that he means to leffen the obligation on
people to pay their debts, becaufe he con-
tends that in foro confeientia > and as in the
light of the Judge of all, a man would be as
much obliged to pay what he owes, without
any bond or mortgage as with it: what he has
faid en this fubjedt, tends to prove, that if
men were what they ought to be, and what
the divine law requires them to be, every
man's word would be as good as his bond; but
that, as things are, it muft be allowed, that
?noJi men's bonds are better than their words*
Ullhna Calejlum terras A5TRJEA reliqu.lt
Therefore, in all cafes it is prudential, becaufe
in mofi necejjary, that the creditor mould have
fomething more fubftantial to depend upon,
than the bare word of the debtor; and the
lender be fecured againft the borrower by fome-
thing of more notoriety than can porTibly arife
from a private tranfadlion, or verbal agreement
merely between themfelves.
What is here faid, I mean to apply to ,
marriage- ceremony, by whom foe ver, or how-
foever, or wherefoever adminiftered. Like all
other fecurities, it tends to the afcertaining
of property; to the pjoteclion of the honeffc
and undefigning, againft the machinations of
treachery ana deceit; and anfwers too many
valuable
[ 3>5 3
valuable purpofes to fociety in general, not ta
be in/breed by thtfeverefi laws.
But, as in all other contracts, different na-
tions have different modes of making them,
fo it is with refpect to marriage-ceremony.
As we find no trace of fuch a thing in the
icriptures, unlefs the payment of the ^HD—
or dowry of 50 Jhekels to the father of the
damfel~miy be fo called, we cannot, on any
divine authority, fay, there was any fixed or
determinate form whatfoever; and even this
payment of the dower was omitted in the cafe
of concubines, who are alfo called wives, but
certainly appear to have been of an inferior
rank, though as lawful wives as thofe who
were endowed. This was the cafe in the
Chrijlian church, fo late as the time oiConftan-
tine: fee before vol. i. p. 32. n. — and this vol.
p. 30.
Were we to fearch the whole hiftory of
the world, we mould hardly find many in-
habitants of it, without fome marriage-cere-
mony or other, and this, becaufe nature itfelf,
as now circumftanced, feems to point out a
nxefjity for fome outward recognition of fo
important a contract; for, as the corruption
of human nature is to be found in all the natu-
rally-engendered offspring of fallen Adam, fo
the dire effects of it have made it ncceffary to
guard againft them by fome means or other.
As to the jews — " There were, according
it to the Talmudifts, three ways of be trot h-
" ing. I. By a written contract. 2. By
ff a verbal agreement, accompanied with a
7 "piece
f 3'6 ]
* piece of money. 3. By the parties coming
€C together, and living as man and wife-,
" which laft they could not properly call
" betrothing, for it was marriage itfelf" — Sec
Alex. Hift. of Worn. vol. ii. p. 193.
As for their ceremonies on the efpottfals or
marriage (the payment of the dowry excepted)
they are entirely of human invention, and
I do not imagine that they are pretended to
be otherwife — nor do I fuppofe that a Jew
would venture to talk of them as of higher
authority.
The Roman Chrijiians learned, from their
Heathen * predeceffors, to impofe on the cre-
dulity of mankind, and to make their priejis
the grand engines of that imposition. Niana
Pompilius, the fecond king of the Romans, in
order to divert his fubjedts from the purfuits
of ambition and violence of arms, multi-
plied cerrmoyiies in religion, and gained a reve-
rence and fanclion to them, by giving out
that he received them nightly from the god-
defs Egeria; by whofe direction alfo he in-
stituted Flamines, (priejis or arch-priejis) vej-
tal virgins, (a fort of nans) the Salian priefts,
and Pontifex Maximus (or heathen Pope.) — So
tlfe Roman Chrijiians invented, firft Chrijlian
* cc Obfervavi fmgularan patrum prudent iam, qui pa-
<c ganorum multa injlituta ad pios ufus retulerunt. Ego
M nan nego pojlcriorum culpa multa mala inde prGveniJJe.'3
" I have obierved the fingular prudence of the [anti-
*c eat] fathers, who applied many inftitutions of the Pa-
<c gam to pious ufes, I do not deny, that many evils ac-
?« crued from thence, through the fault of thofe who
" came after." Cafaubo?;, Ep. 931. Thuano. edit. Aim.
priejis^
[ 3*7 ]
priefls, then a Pontifex Maximus, or Pope,
who, with the affiftance of his Famines or
arcb-priejis, invented rites and ceremonies, all
which were pretended to be jure divino;
among the reit, marriage-ceremonies ; after-
wards, theie were turned into the form of a
I acr anient, and pretended to be divinely infti-
tuted by Jejiis Chri/i; which is juft as true,
as that Numa had his rites and ceremonies from
the goddefs Egeria.
I have little occafion to dwell any longer
on this part of the fubject in this place, be-
caufe the firft contrivance, and fubfequent
progreffion and increafe, of facer dotal kna-
very and impoiition, through a long fuccef-
lion of many ages, has been fully manifefted,
to the difcerning and attentive reader's ob-
servation, in the former parts of thefe volumes,
but efpecially in the firfl chapter of this.
In a feries of letters written from Con-
jlantinople, by M. de Guys, of the acaderhy of
Marfellles, to M. Bourlat de Montredon at Pa-
ris— which were tranflated and published in
London anno 1772 — there is a moft curi-
ous account of fome people, who are inhabi-
tants of the ifland of Mitylene, which tends
to fhew, that there may be fome refpect for
marriage-ceremony , where there is none for
the facred obligation of marriage.
The title of the book is — " A Sentimental
" fourney through Greece" — and, in cine
of the letters, of which the narrative is com-
pofed, M. de Guys relates a very extraordi-
nary cuflom among the Mityknians — " Now
" let
[ 3i8 1
" let me inform you, " fays he, "ofacuftom
*c fublifting at this day in the fame ifland.
" About three days journey from the capital,
" is a fmall town, where every ftranger,
lc when he arrives, is compelled to marry
" one of the women, even though his ftay
te {hould be for one night only. They gene-
" rally prefent a maiden to him, whom he
u muft take for his wife; but if he fhould
*' prove to be a man of any property or im-
" portance, he has the choice of feveral to
c* felect one. Travellers of an inferior rank
<c have no choice, but muft abfolutely put
" up with the lady offered to them, who, in
€t that cafe, is generally the oldefl and plainejl
" in the province. A priejl then appears.
" who performs the marriage- ceremonies with
" great folemnity; a nuptial-feaji is prepared,
" and the new-married couple pafs the night
*' together. The hujband may depart, if he
" pleafes, the next morning. If he has any
" money or valuable effects, and chufes to
" make his ephemeral wife any prefent, it is
" received, and indeed expected; but if he
" does not, he may proceed on his journey
** without moleftation. The lady thinks*
kl herfelf fufficiently obliged to him for hav-
" ing delivered her from the reproach of vit-
" ginity, which it is ignominious to retain,
tc or to give to one of the province. It is
" neceffary, for the prefervation of the lady s
" honour, that her jirji marriage fhould be
" with a ftranger. It is of no confequence
*"* whether he remains with her, or ever re-
" turn?.
[ 3*9 ]
** turns. At the expiration of a year, ilie
" may contract a new marriage with any man
••* that presents himfelf, and fhould the former
•• hufband appear, he would have no legal
" claim whatever upon her. The fadt is,
€( that a lady cannot marry to advantage,
€€ until fhe has lain with a J! ranger. This
<c cujlom is laid to be of the viqjl ant lent date.
" The only alteration which the teachers of
<c the Chrijlian religion have been able to ef-
" fedt among thefe people, in the above par-
<( ticular, is, that the cohabitation fhall be
" preceded by a marriage according to the
" forms of the church now eftablkhed there.
€€ By this compromife, the priejl, the bride,
€* and all parties quiet the fcruples of their
** confeience."
" This cufiom is no lefs curious than well
" attefted."
When we meet with fuch an inftance as
the above — that of the Troglodytes, mentioned
Thclyph. vol. i. 2 r 3 . n. — and number! efs others
which might be mentioned — what a chimera
is that of the pbilofopbers, who contend for a
religion of nature, or principle of morality
common to all mankind, mores communes natu-
rali rationi confentanei, as Grot ins i peaks ! Cicero
obferved very truly, that, " there is nothing
" jbjl range, 'which has not been maintained by
" philofophers ;" and, among the reft, thexi/vg/
£W0M3 or primary and innate principles, or
notions, which are fo accurately difcufled and
refuted in the firit book of Mr. Locke s EiTay
on Human Under/landing.
SrimeTew favage nation^, which we meet
with
[ 32° 1
with accounts of, feem, if we believe the
relations which authors have given us,
to have little, if any, notion of marriage-
ceremony, among thefe may be reckoned the
inhabitants of the lfland of Otabeite, who
are faid " to purfue incontinent gratifica-
" tions, wherever inclination leads them;
" but when a woman becomes pregnant, the
" father of her child thereby becomes her
" hujband" Alex. Hift. of Worn. vol. ii.
p. 187.
Thefefavages, and we Chrijltans, are much
upon the fame eftablifhment, as to " the
" purf tit of incontinent gratifications, wherever
" inclination leads them' — but as to the con-
fequences of this, with regard to the women,
the females at Otabeite have vaftly the advan-
tage of ours; for the Chrijlian women, on their
becoming pregnant, if not fecured verbofacer~
dotis, are treated with a degree of barbarity
and inhumanity, which we may fuppofe the
favages would be afhamed of.
The only objed: among us, is to fecure
a parijh from the expence of what we call
a bajlard — therefore, if a female be pregnant
— which is frequently the confequence of
men's (< being at liberty to purfue inconti-
" nent gratifications wherever inclination
" leads them" — (he is perfuaded by certain ty-
rants, called parijh-qfficers, by the gentle elo-
quence of being threatened with bridewell or
flarving, to go before a magiftrate, and to
fwear the child me goes with, to the father
©f it; this being done, a warrant goes forth
to
[ 3*1 ]
to apprehend the faid father, and if he is
caught, he is to find fecurity to indemnify
the parifh, to appear at the next quarter- fef-
fions, or mult go to gaol; but no part of his
recognizance engages for any amends or fecu-
rity to the woman, or to have any thing to do
with the child, farther than to fave thj parifh
harmlefs from any burden it may bring upon
it. If the fellow runs away, which is a
common cafe, the poor female, after a month
from her lying-in, becomes an objedt of one
of the moft fevere and brutal ftatutes that
could well be penned, viz. 7. Jac. c. 4. § 7.
" Every lewd woman which mall have any
u bajiard, which may be chargeable to the
ci parifh, the juftices of the peace fhall com-
?* mit fuch lewd woman to the houfe of
" correftion, there to be punifhed and fet on
" work, during the term of one whole year*'
—The readings on this claufe, as cited
by Burn from D alt on, are worth attending
to. — " Shall commit fuch lewd woman]-— Rut
" fuch punifhment fhall not be, until after
" that the woman is delivered of her child;
u neither are the juftices to meddle with the
" woman, until the child be born, and fhe
H ftrong again. "— i. e. till (as we fay) her
month is up.
" Alfo it feemeth, that fuch baftard child
" is not to be fent with the mother to the
" houfe of correElion, but rather that the child
*' fhould remain in the town where it was
" born, (or fettled with the mother) and
" there to be relieved by the work of th.9
Vol. III. Y ' " mother,
[ 322 ]
'* mother, or by relief from the reputed fa-
" ther: and yet the common opinion and
<{ practice is otherwifer viz. to fend the
i{ child with the mother to the houfe of correc-
" tioni and this may alio feem reajonabler
" where: the child jucketh on the mother."
Dalt. c. ii.
" But it feemeth much the heft, to com-
" mit the mother only, and not the child, but
ec leave it to her choice whether fhe will
*' take it with her, and if fhe will not, then to
" fend it to its law fill place of fettlement."
I am clearly of Doctor Burns opinion,,
that " it feemeth much beft (i. e. moft poii'ic) to
" commit the mother only, and not the child'
— becaufe it relieves the parifh from its bur-
den much foone'r, than by fullering it to go-
with its mother to the houfe of cor reel Hon ,
from whence, being preferved by the breaft
and attention of its pcor mother, it may re-
turn again, and then it may be chargeable to
the pari/i ; whereas, if it be torn from the
mother's breaft at the tender age of one monthy
and be committed to the cuftody of a certain
fpecies- of ' Jhe-wolf called a parijh-nurfe, un-
lefs it fliould have the conftitution of Romu-
lus and Remus put together, the parifh will
foon be rid of its incumbrance. Thefe fage
and pious matrons commonly fupply the place
of the mother s m*k$ with as little nutriment as
they can, wTith any tolerable hopes of fleering
clear of a coroners inqueji, or of not diminifh-
ing their own fcanty ftipend too much, admi~
sifter. Others of them are very public-fpi*
5 rited%
[ 323 1
ritedy and have too much care for the welfare
of the parifh, to fuffer an incumbrance upon
it longer than needs muft, and they ufually
adapt their care of the child accordingly.
But fuppofe the wretched mother, influ-
enced by the natural feelings of maternal
tendernefs, takes with her her poor infant, to
be a fharer in the cold and filth of a prifon*
and for a whole year is to endure the ltripes
of her punifiment, inflidled by the unrelent-
ing hand of a four gaoler; fuppofe her fet
to fome laborious work, and at the fame time
to nourifh her child, and to have no recruit
for her exhaufted ftrength, but the fcanty
provifion of the * gaol- allowance of bread and
water; in what a condition muft fhe be? — to
what ftate of conftitution may fhe be re-
duced ?— but, which is ftill worfe, what are the
probable confequences of her being fhut up,
for a whole twelvemonth together, with com-
mon whores and thieves y but that all the re-
mains of decency, modefty, and of the com-
parative innocence which fhe carried with
her, fhould all be obliterated, and fhe fhould
become, on her return to her parifh, a com-
mon peft and nuifance, and fit for nothing but
to be exterminated from the face of the earth?
I queftion not but the terror of this flatute
has occafioned many a child-murder, and
wonder not, that, fourteen years afterwards,
the legiflature (hould be compelled to pafs a
law in hopes of putting a flop to it — viz.
* This, I have been informed, amounts to three half-
pence a day.
Y 2 21 Jac.
[ 3*+ ]
21 Jac. I. c. 27. the preamble of which
clearly confirms what I am now faying —
'• Whereas many lewd women thet have
" been delivered of baftard - children, to
" AVOID THEIR SHAME, and tO ESCAPE
<c punishment, do fecretly Aury> or conceal
" the death of their children ; and after, if
" the child be found dead, the faid women do
" alledge, that the faid child was torn dead-,
" whereas it falleth out fometimes (although
" hardly it is to be proved) that the faid
" child or children were murdered by the faid
" women* their lewd mothers, or by their af-
u fent or procurement—For the preventing
" therefore, &c."
Now, what would have become of fuch a
woman under the divine law? — She would
have b^en deemed the man's wife, and as fuch
he muft have maintained and cohabited with
her — and fo it would be among the Jews to
this day. — So it was once by the law of
France — fo it is now by the laws of Switzer-
land(fee vol. ii. 335, iftedit. — 297, 2d edit.)
— and fo it is (to our fhame be it fpoken)
among the favages of the ijland of Ota-
heite !
By the way, we muft not forget, that while
the poor creature has fo much done by the
civil power for the correcrion of her hody, it
is by no means improbable, but, on duepre-
Jentment by the right trujly and well-Aeloved
the churchwardens, the Jpiritual court may
think it worth their while to do fomething
projalute animce, "Jor the good of her foul"—
See,
I 3*5 1
See the c?r e of y^;z Jenkinfon, Thelyph.
vol. i. p. 67, n. If thefe two modes of pu-
nifhm rnt were fte Jily and uniformly applied,
it might be of /•■ odigious Jervice to parifhes,
in eafing theni from the burden of lewd wo-
m$n and baflard children, as furnifhing a very
ftrong inducement- to the mothers to cut their
infants threats, rather than run the rifque of
£0 much (hame and mifery; the confequence
of which would probably be, that the hang-
man would eafe the parifh of the burden of
the mother.
Anno 1780. — At Nottingham, a poor girl
of a neighbouring village was libelled, in
the fpiritual court, for fornication ; the cafe
was, that, fome time before, fhe had had
a child that was born a bajlard-, fhe was fen-
tenced by the court to do penance — in order to
this, fhe was to pay down a fum of money,
which fhe had not; my informant faw her
weeping bitterly under this piece of oppref-
fion; however, by the help of a friend's cha-
rity, fhe was at laft enabled to pay the ex-
aclion, and fo was delivered from the jaws of
excomm un i cat ion .
It fhould feem,from the converfation which
I had with the gentleman who related the
above to me, that the poor people in the nor-
thern diflant counties are dreadfully fcourged
and harrafled with thefe oppreflive exactions,
it being the conftant cudom, in many parts,
to punilh the unhappy victims with thefe
fpiritual extortions of money, befides expofing
the delinquents to the contempt and fcorn of
Y 3 the
[ 326 ]
the whole parifh, by fetting them publicly in
the church in a white meet. — My friend aiked
fome of thofe whom he was converting with
on the fubjecl, if people did not complain
of it as a great cpprefTion and hardship?
<e O no," faid one, " we like it much, for
" we mould have fo many bajiards to keep,
" as to be quite over-run with them, if. it
" w7as not for this." — How far this obferva-
tion might hold, I can't fay; but I am afraid,
that, from a certain concatenation between
caufe and effecl, fuch proceedings are a means
of leffening the charge of parishes with re-
flect to bajiards, more by increafing the num-
ber of murders, than by any thing elfe. See
before vol. ii. 347, n. iftedit. — p. 307, n. 2d
edit, concerning this relic of Popery.
I am acquainted with a certain magijlrate,
who, in cafes of this fort, makes the befr. en-
quiry he can of the parifh officers concerning
the character of the woman; and if, from what
they fay, and from other circumftances, he
has reafon to think, that her fituation is owing
to the fedudlion of the man, and that fhe has
had no concerns with any other, he always
perfwades a public marriage; he even inforces
his arguments from the fcriptures which have
been fo often mentioned, and fcruples not to
declare, " that, as in God's fight, the woman
" is already the man's wife" and therefore to
conjure him, as he mail anfwer it at the day
of judgment, to make her fo according to the
laws of his country. In feveral inftances,
canvidtion has been wrought, the parties have
been
[ 327 1
'been married, and the magistrate has, on en-
quiry after them, had the fatisfa&ion to hear,
in feveral inftances, that they go on well, and
feem perfectly contented. How much for the
honour of God, and for the good of the king-
dom in general, would it be, if magijlrates (as.
in IJraelJ had a power, in all cafes,, to inforce
fuch arguments on the refraffory, by the co-
ercive power of a wholefome law made for
;the purpofe !
One cafe I cannot help mentioning, as it
•tends to ilJuftrate wrhat has been faid on the
evil tendency of the marriage- act .
A young fellow, who had been fworn to
as the father of a child, with which a young
woman was then pregnant, and who was
within a little of her time, being brought
by a warrant before the faid magijirate> was
interrogated concerning a point which the
girl had mentioned during the time of her
examination, which was^ whether he had
not promifed her marriage .? The man owned
he had — the magi/irate £hen inforced, by
every argument he could think of, the duty
and neceffity which the man was under to
fulfil his * promife. The maa, after fome
* Such a .promife, accompanied fay fuch an acl, would
be deemed by the ecdefiaftlcal law a marriage de faJh,
and the man might have been compelled to have folem-
nizedit publicly in facie ecclefice — but now there's an end
of that, and one of the molt atrocious and mifchievous
villainies that any man can be capable of committing,
has the fanction of an acl of parliament, by the exprefs
words of which, the perpetrator of it is fet free from all
matrimonial engagement whatfoever. See before, vol. i.
30, 31, and Vol, ii, c. 7. throughout.
Y 4 little
[ 328 ]
little hefitation, owned himfelf convinced,
and confented to marry the girl as the next
morning. The magifirate was not a little
pleafed, to hope, that here was another fe-
male likely to be faved from ruin, another
poor infant from the infamy and difadvan-
tages of -f baftardy ;— but a check was put to it
all, for, as by the marriage- acl three un-
days muft intervene for the afking of banns>
the man's good intent could not be carrie4
into execution without a licence — now a
marriage by licence comes to above forty fal-
lings, including the church fees — the poor felr
low, by keeping out of the way for a rime,
had thrown himfelf out of work, the poor
girl had been turned out of her fervice, and
had been living on the little pittance which
had come to her for wages, and on the difpo-
fal of part of her cloaths, till (he applied to,
the parifh; fo that, between them, they could
not raife a fifth part of the money. The
magifirate having, on like occafions, applied
himfelf to the parifh officers with fuccefs, re-
commended it to thole then prefent to be at
f Many cafes might be put, where children, as the
law now ftands, muft necejfarily be born bajlards, how-
ever willing the parents may be to prevent it. As for
example — fuppofc one or both the parties to be under agey
their parents dead,r.nd no guardians appointed — they can't
be married by licence-, they can't, through their poverty,
apply to the court of Chancery ; the delay of three Sundays
for banns may outran the time of the woman's pregnancy
— but how much more, where, as in fome poor parifties
in Wales, and in fome parts of England, there is no fer-
vice above once in a month ; here three months may be tp
clapfe before the marriage can be had and folemnized.
the
[ 329 3
the expcnce of the wedding'; one of them
feemeci inclined to it, but his furly partner
interrupted all compliance, by entering his
proteft againft it — " Noa — noa — we'll do no
'-' more vor tin, aii't pleafe your worfhip, we
" ha* been at expences enow aready — what
<c wi' hunting ater the mon, and corning
■' backwards and vorwards about zwearing
" the child, and one thing or wotber, it has
" coil: the pariih as good as ten [hillings, and
" we'll do no more vor un." — All remon-
strance was in vain, the honeft farmer's—
" we'll do no more vor un," prevailed with
his partner, and there ended all hope of the
fpeedy marriage, which had been propofed and
afTented to. The magijlrate> therefore, find-
ing the young man without fureties to an-
fwer for his appearance, and the impoflibi-
lity of perfuading either of the officers to do
that kindnefs, or " any more vor un" — and
that he could as foon have repealed the mar-
riage-aEly or have reconciled it to fcripture,
common fenfe, or true policy — made ufe
of his difcretion, and committed the young
man to prifon, 'till the three Sundays mould
be paffed, and the banns publifhed ; with an
order to the gaoler, to deliver him, on the
Monday following the laft day of publifhing
the banns, to the cuftody of the conflable of
the pariih to which the parties belonged,
that the faid confiabk mould convey him to
the parifh church at the appointed hour, fee
them married, and then difcharge his pri-
foner.
This
[ 33° 1
This obligation to fend the young mi
to live near three weeks among the inhabi-
tants of a common prifon, might have been
attended v/ith confequences of the worft kind
to the prifoner ; who could be looked upon
as no other than a victim to a cruel and un-
natural law, and whofe only crime,, for which
he was confined, was, that he could neither
contract three weeks into the fpace of twenty-
four hours, nor produce between forty and
fifty Jhillings, to pay for doing an act of retri-
butive juftice to his fellow-creature, in the
nioft expeditious manner.
However, the parties were married, and
there was an end — the young man turns out
a good huiband, and the woman a good
wife ; but there can be little doubt, that
there are many cafes of this fort, which do
not end quite fo well -y for of all experiments
which can be tried for the corruption of
the common people, none have been found
fo thoroughly to fucceed, as that of fending
them into a gaol ; and to be laid under a ne-
ceffity of doing this, merely becaufe a man's
power of doing a right thing is to be fuf-
pended for a length of time, beyond his de-
fire and intention to do it, is a fort of prac-
tical folecifm, unjuftifiable in itfelf, irrecon-
cileable to common juftice, inconfiftent with
found policy, and a moft painful tafk im-
pofed on the humanity and feelings of the
magijlrate — add to this, one good reafon,
among others, for the repeal of a law, which
may
[ 33i ]
may occafion thefe things to happen every
day.
The more merciful Rcmijh ritual fays — *
" Public at ionibus faclis tribus die bus fejlisy"
and our own ritual (which follows the Romi/h
pretty clofely) till fuperfeded by the mar-
riage-aft, faid — " three Sundays or holy days'
— fo that, by poffibility, a few days might
determine the matter : — but now the interval
between the marriage-ceremony and the con-
tract is fo far protracted, and fo far out of
the reach of the poorer fort to fhorten by the
enormous expence of licences, as to form, in
many cafes, a very inconvenient, in not a few,
a very dangerous delay — and is furely well
worthy the very ferious confideration of the
legijlative powers.
'Till an alteration be made, we certainly
are far behind, in point of policy and huma-
nity, as well as in conformity to the divine
fow, the favages of Otaheite, and perhaps
many others — who, not having the law, do
by nature the things contained in the law.
Rom ii. 14.
Though the Otaheiteans, and we, differ in
what has been before mentioned, yet we won-
derfully agree in certain other particulars.
Dr. Alex. Hift. Worn. vol. i. p. 286, fays —
\l As polygamy is not allowed among them1
(there we agree) " they have a fociety among
46 them called Arreoy, in which, to fatisfy
te the lujl of variety, every woman is common
€c to every man." — And have we no fuch fo-
cieties ? what are our brothels, what are our
public
[ 332 1
public ftreets after dark ? what, many affem-
blies of men and women, of more often fible
decency perhaps, but really and truly fo
manyARKEOYS? " And w hen any of thefe
" women happens to have a child, it is fmo-
" ihered in the moment of its birth, that it
u may not interrupt the pleafures of its infa-
46 nous mother-," — Children are rarely mur-
dered by their mothers, among us, merely from
this principle; but if from fear, Jhame, or the
dread of fever 'e punifhment, women are terrified
into the murder of their children, it amounts
much to the fame, with refpecl to the children ;
and if we take into the account the numbers
deftroyed by caufng abortion, an art which it
does not appear that the favages have as yet
acquired, and thofe which are deftroyed either
in the birth, or after — many of which murders
are never difcovered, perhaps more than arc
difcovered — it is hardly to be doubted, but
this ijland equals at leaft, if not exceeds, in
numbers of murdered infants, the ifland of
Otaheite. Their Arreoy feems to be confined
within a much fmaller compafs than ours-,
for as to the liberty our men enjoy, to ruin
as many women as they can, it is unconfined
and unlimited throughout the kingdom.-
" but in this juncture, jhould nature revolt at
" fo horrid a deed, even then the mother is not
4i allowed to fave the child, — This, I confefs,
goes beyond us ; and yet, the taking a young
infant from the mother s breafi, and commit-
ting it to the care of a parifh-nurfe, on fend-
ing the mother to be punijhed in the houfe of
correction.
[ 333 ]
correction, is not without fome affinity to this
pra&ice. " unlefsfoe can find a man who will
" patronize it as a father ;" — This brings the
matter into fomewhat like a parallel again, as
many children among us have been murdered
through the defer tioti of the pregnant woman
by the father of the child. u in which cafe,
f* the man is confidered as having appropriated
" the woman to himfelf and Jhe is accordingly
" extruded from this hopeful fociety "
This particular has already been fuffici-
ently obferved upon, and the advantage of
the Otaheitean pregnant women, above that
of the European, pointed out.
To attempt a recapitulation of all the mar-
riage-ceremonies of the different nations of
mankind, would be a work far exceeding the
limits as well as the intention of this volume-,
but whatever they may be, as to matter or
manner, they are doubtlefs of human contri-
vance, and therefore ought only to be looked
upon as the feveral modes of eftablifhing a
civil- contract, not only between the parties,
but with refpedt to the fociety where their lot
may happen t© be caft.
Dr. Alex. Hift. Worn. vol. ii. p. 207, ob-
ferves as follows: — " In the profecution of
" our enquiry, we have fcarcely difcovered
" among other primitive nations" (befides
the Jews, which he had mentioned before, as
having no religious marriage -ceremonial re-
vealed to them) " we have fcarcely difcovered
M any of them even pretending that marri-
" age (i. e. marriage-ceremony) was the in-
" ftitution
'.£
se
<c
I 334 J
ftitution of their gods; but of their flrft It*
" giflators, as Menes in Egypt, and Cecrops in
f* Greece; nor have we found, even among the
" Jews themfelves, that either prophet or
" priejl were concerned in the celebration of
M marriage, though they managed every thing
that was confidered zsfacred, or of divine
institution : the fame was the cafe among
other primitive nations; they had priejls
to whom the celebration of every holy rite
was committed; but their magijlrates, and
the relations of the contracting parties,
were the only people who concerned them-
felves about marriage ; a ftrong prefump-
" tion, that it was not confidered in any other
" light than as a civil- contraB"
There is, however, with regard to the Jews,
no reafon to talk of " ftrong prefumption,"
for the light itfelf is not more clear and evi-
dent, than that, throughout the whole law of
Mofes, there is not the leaft hint or trace of
nuptial ceremony of a religious kind, or the
interference of any minijler of religion in the
matter — therefore the throwing marriage into
the hands of Chrijlian churchmen (and by what
means and by what degrees that has been
done clearly appears from the foregoing evi-
dence) and pretending that a ceremonial to
be adminiftered by priejls — -jure divino, was ne-
ceffary and efiential to make marriages valid
as in God's fight — and that all who came to-
gether, and lived together, without it, lived
in " a ftate of whoredom and fornication" —
is alio more than a jirong preemption, for it
amounts
[ 335 3
Amounts to demonjlration, that Chrijiian church*
men have been the greateft, and mod errant
and complete fet of knaves, that ever in-
fefted the earth. None but fuch could, for
their own profit and intereir, have mifin-
terpreted, perplexed, and confounded, as they
have done, the holy and fimple ordinance of
God with refpecl: to marriage, and then throw
the dufl of priejily rites and ceremonies into
the eyes of the laity, to prevent a difcovery
of their impojlure. — How all this originated,
how it has been carried on, and how it ftands
at this hour, has been fully declared.
One ftiould hardly think, that fuch a. con-
tempt poured on the Hebrew fcriptures, in
which the whole mind and will of Jehovah
ftands written, as with a fun- beam, touching
thofe wife and beneficent regulations, which
He was pleafed to ordain with refpecl: to the
commerce of 'the fixes, could admit of aggrava*
tion; but this matter leaves no fort of doubt,
when we find the impojiors placing the great
reviver, interpreter, and defender of the law
of Jehovah, at the head of their faction, and
reprefenting Him as inftituting a new ordi-
nance of marriage, appropriated to Ghrifiians—
this upon the foundation of a new law ; and
thus rendering null and void the fixed and unal-
terable decrees of Eternal Wifdom — on the im-
portant and interefting fubjecl of marriage.
Let thofe who think I carry this matter too
far, firft read their Bible, then let them take
Du Pins hiftory of Ecclejiaftical Writers, &c.
or, if they do not care to read over fo volu-
minous a work, let them confider well the
preceding
[ 336 ]
preceding extracts from it ; let them then
compare the whole of ourJyftem9 with what
they find there upon the fubjeft, and if, after
all this, they do not i^gree with me, then let
them take for their motto — Non perfuadebis,
etiamfi perfuaferis \
In the foregoing long detail of evidence,
we have often met with the word Church,
which is the Englifi tranflation of the Greek
naO^ncL, and of the Latin Eccle/ia, thefe feem
derived from the Greek EiutctXetv to call out,
and denote the church of God, or an ajfem-
bly or fociety of men, called out of mankind by
the word of God j thefe are, through JanBi-
f cation of the fpirit, and belief of the truth ,
(2 ThefT. ii. 13.) united to God and to each
other, by the threefold cord of faith,
hope, and love. They have One Lord —
One Faith — One Baptism. SeeEph.iv.5.
All the members of this fociety, however dif-
treffed, dijlingui/hed9 or dijipated over the face
of the earth, form, in a collective fenfe, the
holy Catholic churchy and where only two or
three of 'them meet together in the name of their
common Lord, He is in the midjl of them.
Matt, xviii. 20. Therefore there are as many
churches on earth, as there are fuch focieties
thus meeting together — but thefe, as well as
the individuals which compofe them, though
many, form but one Body, of which Christ
is the Head. Eph. i. 22, 23.
For my own part, I doubt not but there
are members of this church among all feels
and parties of profefling Chrijlians, and it di-
lates my heart with a tranfport of joy, to
think
[ 337 J
think how many thoufands, now divided from
each other from various caufes of feparation?
as to place, fituation, and other unavoidable
circumftances incident to the prefent ftate of
things — perhaps divided by the narrownefs
of a party y or the prejudices and bigotry of
feftarian* zeal, which, like impaffable gulphs,
ftand between them — fhall one day meet to-
gether, and join with one heart and one voice,
* In the year 1644, at the treaty of Uxbridge, the re-
verend doclors of the king's party affirmed Epifcopacy to be
jure divino — the reverend minijlers of the other party,
affirmed Prejbytery to be jure divino. Thefe difputes
were carried on with great warmth, and pretty equal
fuccefs, for both parties ended jufl where they began,
and full as wide from each other's fentiments. — The
foundation of all, feems to have been, fomething very
like that of a certain difpute, which is recorded Mark
ix. 34. If both fides had attended as they ought to the
rebuke given ver. 35, matters would have ended more
amicably — however, a third jure divino ftarted up under
the notion of Independency, which, by the help of the
jure divino of Prefbytery, overturned the government both
in church and fate — cut the king's head oft — and then
took all into their own hands — 'till the intolerable ty-
ranny they exercifed \ipoft one another, obliged them tQ
reftore the antient government again. After this, the
Epifcopalian jure divino took care to fecure itfelf, and
pay off old (cores, by cruel and opprefiive laws againit
difjenters, which erected a tyranny forely felt by ihcfe
lajl ; 'till, after the Revolution, its claws were cut, and
■ its teeth broken, by the truly Prote/lant and Chrifian id-
ler ati on- at! . — However, hiftory informs us, that perfe-
cution and intolerancy are too congenial with human
pride and love of pozuer, to be chargeable only on the
church of Rome. All feels and parties- have, in their
turns, been calling for fire from h'e^ven, as it were,
againft one another, little thinking what manner cfj'pint
they are of or what mull become of them,Jf the judos
of all mould deal with them as they would deal with
each other
Vol. III. 2 b
f 338 ]
in the united praifes of their glorious Head,
and blufh to think, that they have fuffered
any outward diftinctions to influence or lerTen
that inward affection, which, with refpect to
each other, ought to have been a tranfcript
of the Redeemer s love to them. See John xiii.
34-
Such is the church -militant on earth, which,
with that triumphant in Heaven, makes but
one family (Eph. iii. 5.) which confifts of the
redeemed out of every nation, kindred, people,
and tongue. (Rev. vii. 9.) This, in a compara-
tive view, is ftyled — a little flock, Luke xii. 32 ;
but, when all fhall be gathered together, will
appear to be a great multitude which no man
can number.
After all this, it muft furely appear to the
diligent revifer of the former part of this vo-
lume, that the word Church is to be underftood
very differently, in thofe extracts from the
annals of Popery, which fo long detained his
patience in the perufal of them.
There, this ill-underftood and much-abufed
Word Church, denotes a fet of people, defcribed
by the apojile, Acts xx. 30. as grievous wolves,
entering in and not /paring the flock— /peaking
pervei/e things to draw away di/ciples a/ter
them. — We have feen how early this myfiery
cf iniquity began to work — how, under the
name of the church, a kingdom of this world
was erected, and its throne filled with the man
of fin, who oppo/eth and exalt eth him/elf above
all that is called God, or that is worfl:ipped ;
/o that he as God fitteth in the temple of God,
Jhewing
f 359 ]
fl:cwing bimfelf that he is God. 2 ThefT ii. 4.
We have feen, how, in confequence of this,
and in order to fupport this fame church,
the minds of men mould be filled with fuch
ideas as were beft fuited to maintain its domi-
nion, not only over the people, but even over
the kings of the earth. — Hence falfe traditions
took place of the written fcriptures — lege?ids,
full of lying miracles and wonders, fupplanted
the records of divine truth — laws of councils,
fynods, and Popes, were fubftituted for the laws
of Heaven — the love of power fupplanted the
humble fpirit of the gofpel — ambition and
pride drave out lowlinefs and meeknefs — an iron
fceptre, wielded by the hand of tyranny, fuc-
ceeded to the mild and gentle reign of Chrif-
tian liberty — adamantine chains of ignorance
and fuperjlition were forged for the reafon and
underflanding of mankind — the eafy yoke of
Christ was laid afide, and the intolerable
burden of church-power crufhcd all who re-
fufed to fubmit to it.
Such beins: the form and government of
this worldly kingdom, its minijiers, who were
to carry it on, muft be fuitable to the nature
of it. Hence arofe, in the fhape, and under
the venerable names of cardinals, archbijhops,
bifoops, prie/ls, deans, canons, prebendaries,
&c. &c. as many Lords over God's heritage
as the wit of man could invent, or the power
of the Pope create; riches * and worldly gran-
deur
* It was a fine check: which was cnce given to a
certain Pope, who was, with no fmall fatibfaftion, &z{-
Z i cantins
[ 2\o ]
dcur gave them pre-eminence, and every
means to advance thefe were devifed and em-
ployed. Among the reft, the ordinance of
marriage was framed anew; its antient and
iimple difpenfation afforded no revenue, added
no importance to churchmen-, where it was di-
vinely forbidden, no difpenfation from man could
authorize it; where it was divinely allowed, no
licence from man could add to its perfection
and obligation: — this was found neceffary,
therefore, to be changed; the thing itfelf mufi
be deftroyed, and framed anew; its nature and
eJJ'ence muft no longer remain upon the Crea-
tor's institution, but depend on certain rites
and ceremonies of man's invention — thefe were
to be fuppofed to be coeval with the difpenfa-
tion of the gofpel, and the laws of Jehovah,
by which it had been regulated and fettled
from the beginnings were deemed antiquated
and laid afide. We have fee:i the degrees by
which this was effected, from the firft introduc-
tion of clerical benediclion, to the total invali-
dation, not only of the divine law, but of all
civil contract, by the council of Trent — we have
feen what mifchiefs have been produced to
the world, more efpecially to the female fx,
by thefe papal inventions; and happy would
it be for millions, did we alio fee, that nothing
can obviate thefe mifchiefs, but returning to
canting on the great accefTion of riches to the church —
<c Now/' faid he, " the church can no longer fay, as St.
" Peter did — Silver and void have 1 none."—" No/' an-
fvvered one, " Neither can it fay, as he did — " In the
" name of Jesus Christ of 'Nazareth y rife up and walk.'9
See Adls iii. 6.
that
[ 341 J
that from whence we are falleji — the holy,
^VISE, BENEFICENT, and SALUTARY LAWS
of Heaven.
The way to do this, is to reftore to the
civil power that which has been evidently
taken from it; to fuffer no longer zfyjlem to
remain, which hides from the eyes of man-
kind the real and true nature and obligation
of the divine ordinance. The civil magijirate
ought to have the Jble jurifdiction over civil
contracts, in this as well as in all other cafes —
and furely a way might eafily be found, by
which this might be brought to pafs, fo as to
anfwer every good end that can poffibly accrue
from the preient mode of marriage, and de-
feat thofe mifchievous ends which are the
infallible confequences of the prefent fyftem;
above all, that anti-Jcriptural and deftructive
notion, that men are under no obligation to
that retributive juftice which God has com-
manded, unlefs bound upon them by the word
of a priefi. On fuch occafions, the accefs to
the magijirate mould be facilitated as much
as poffible, and his power, like that of the
magiftrates in Ijrael, mould inftantly compel
fuch an observance of it, as they would have
done in the like cafe. See before vol. ii.
p. 73. ift. edit. — p. 67. 2d edit. This would
rid the world of all the mifchief which now
accrues from the difficulties laid in the way
of marriage, by ecclefiajiical contrivance, and
by the falfe policy of the marriage-atl.
'One would think, that in fuch a country as
this, when we are driven to fuch a ftate of de-
population, as to make laws to invite foreigners
Z3 to
[ 342 ]
to navigate our mips, and find ourfelves
obliged to allow our merchants three fourths
of foreign feamen, in order to carry on our*
trade, (See 20 G. III. c. 20.) all the caufes
of depopulation mould be well confidered, and
as many of them removed as poffible; that
marriage, fo far from being clogged with diffi-
culties and impediments which are folely the
inventions of men, mould be facilitated and
encouraged, by being reftored to its antient
footing, as it appears to have been ordained,
inflituted, and regulated, by the great
Lord of Heaven and Earth.
This would alfo, as has been already fhewn
at large, greatly deftroy that deftroyer of fo
many — public projlitution. — It would refcue
multitudes of breeding women from that
fatal obftacle to population, the promifcuous in-
tercourfe of the fixes — it would be a means
of eradicating that dreadful difeafe, which is
the baneful confequence of it, and which, in
different ways, robs us of fo many people.
By recommending a reftitution of the divine
law, I am recommending no new invention, no
JJtGpian fcheme, no medicine for our fad and
mournful ftate of conjiitution, but what has
been tried and found to fucceed; there is
not an ingredient in it, but what has been
thoroughly weighed and prepared by un-
erring wifdom.* — Let us only take a view of its
cffcCts on Ifrael of old, who were as the fands
on the fea Jhore, and as the flars of heaven for
multitude. — The plan which they purfued was
of God — from whence the plan which we
are purfuing is derived, or by whom devifed,
2 I mould
[ 343 1
I fhould imagine the reader can be at no lois
to determine, after having attentively red,
and confidered, the contents of this, and of
the two preceding volumes.
From the foregoing evidence it alfo appears,
from whence we derive our oppreflive and
unjuftifiable notions of divorce a vinculo ma-
trimonii — of permitting men to forfake women
entirely, if not married to them with every
given requifite of fome human form, though
iuch requifites, or the reafons of annulling
marriages, which are wholly grounded on
thofe requifites, fo far from having fcripture-
warrant, diredtly oppofe the mind of God as
revealed in the fcriptures upon the JubjeSl.
We may farther be inftrudted, whence is
derived the depriving men of that moft im-
portant privilege of divorce in cafe of the
wife's adult eryy and forbidding them to marry
others during the adulterefss life, unlefs fet
free by human authority; this at fo enormous
an expence as few can 'afford. — Thus is a
man placed in a moft cruel fltuation, either
to fhare his wife with others, and be liable
to the maintenance of other men's children;
or, if he feparates himfelf from her, he is re-
duced to all the temptations and mifchiefs of
a celibacy which is impoied on him by the
ible tyranny of human authority, without any
power whatfoever of flying to that redrefs,
which is gracioufly and gratuitoufly afforded
him by the God of nature. We have fecn
the dreadful confequences which attended the
celibacy of the clergy — we are aftonifhed at
Z 4 the
J 344 ]
the wickcdnefs of thofe canons which enjoined
it — we wonder, that, to this hour, it fhould
be continued in the Romi/lj church — we ap-
prove, and juftly, in the higheft terms, the
banifhment of it from among the Protectants
—how is it that we do not fee, that our con-
tinuing to follow the Popijh canons relative to
divorce, is productive of a fort of factitious
celibacy, with refpeCt to men who cannot
afford divorces on the footing on which the
Pope placed them, and on which we have in
effeCt continued them, only with having in-
creafed the expence an hundred fold, and by
this having placed them fo much further out
of the reach of the injured — how is it, I fay,
that we cannot fee, that this fort of celibacy
is attended with all the mifchiefs of the
other, and, without doubt, as great an incen-
tive to adultery and whoredom, and, in confe-
quence, to the ruin of women both married
and unmarried? What difference can it pof-
fibly make to a man, whether he be left a
wretched prey to his paffions, becaufe he has
taken orders — or becaufe his wife is become no
wife to him, and he is forbidden to take
another, but on impoffible terms?
We have had alfo laid open before us, in
the preceding long teftimony, the infult put
on the ordinance of Heaven by the feveral ca-
nons which were made for preventing clandef
tine marriages, and making them null and void
• — a matter which was fo far from being una-
rnmoufly agreed upon, even at the Popifj
council of Trent, that Cardinal Varmienfe ab-
fented
[ 345 3
fented himfelf the day on which the voices
were to be collected for the decree ; and no
lefs than fifty-three others of the ccuncil gave
their voices againft it — iC for, that, marriage
" being a divine, not an human ordinance,
" could not be diflolvedby any power oj man"—
See before vol. ii. p. 39. 2d. edit. n. — p. 41.
ift. edit. n.
By what art of logic can it be made out,
that this is not as good a reafon againft our
" aft for preventing clandefiine marriages"
as it was againft the proceedings of the council
of 'Trent? Or how can the influence of that
great man, who brought in the marriage-acl,
and who, by dint of the weight of that influ-
ence, carried it through all its ftages in par-
liament, create a more fcriptural fanction of
that law, than the influence of the Pope over
the members of the council of Trent, could
juftify paffing the decree for preventing, and
making void, clandestine marriages ?
We likewife may fee the power affumed to
vacate marriages, which are had and folem-
nized before a certain time of life, which is
arbitrarily fixed to the age of 21 years in
both parties, unleis had by confent ^parents
and guardians. A Pope of Rome could fix the
age of the man at 30, and of the woman at 25 :
we are more moderate — but where doth God
make fuch marriages void?
The law, antecedently to the marriage-atty
flood thus, viz.
" From the age of /even to the age of
f* twelve as to the woman, and of jour teen as
" to
C 346 ]
iC to the man, they cannot contract matrx-
M mony de prafenti, but only defuturo.
" A man, fo foon as he hath accomplifhed
" the age of fourteen years, and a woman , io
" focn as fhe fhall have accomplifhed the
" age of twelve years, may contract true
u and lawful matrimony.
" But by can. 100 — no children, un-
" der the age of 21 years complete, fhall
" contract themfelves without the confent of
€t their parents or guardians, and governors,
" if their parents be deceafed.iy — It is to be
obferved, that here is nothing faid of va-
cating actual marriage. See Burns Eccl. Law,
tit. Marriage, § 2.
By 25 of Hen. VIII. c. 21, power is given
to the archbif:cp of Canterbury, to grantyi-
culties, difpenfations,2J\& licences — as the Pope
had done before. This Papal power is referved
by the marriage- aB to the archbifiop, who*,
by virtue thereof, can licenfe perfons to marry
at any time or place; which marriages, with-
out fuch licence, would be void to all intents
and purpofes whatfoever! So that now, all
that glorious and beneficent plan, which was
ordained of God, for regulating the com-
merce of the fexes, and more efpecially for the
prefervation and protection of the female fex,
is fet aiide, and we are to confider the va-
lidity of the divine ordinance of marriage, in
all cafes, as dependent on the laws of men,
and in very many cafes, as narrowed into the
compafs of an archbifkop" s licence! — Deo non
sbfiante.
Thus
[ 347 ]
Thus have we been brought to a thorough
acquaintance with the whole doctrine of mar-
riage, as it is in deed and in truth the ordi-
nance of God, and as it is now in deed and in
truth a creature of the ftate, or rather a fort
of creature of Popijh extraction, yet of the
amphibious kind, partaking partly of ecele-
Jiajiical law, partly of the civil municipal law,
but hardly a trace remaining of its antient
conformity to the law of Heaven.
The effects and confequences of all this
have been clearly pointed out, and laid before
the public — ocular demonftration proves their
truth, and every day's experience brings in
its evidence for the necefiity of reforma-
tion.
Laftly, and upon the whole — It does ap-
pear, that Chriflian churchmen have imitated
the apqftate Jews. The caufe thefe had to
ferve was the fubverfion of Chriftianity, there-
fore, when " they got the New Teftament
" into their hands, and faw the evidences it
" was built upon, they turned Maforites*
" Rabbles, Expounders, Scribes, &c. patched
" up Talmuds, Miflmas, Cabbalas, &c. and at
*< laft fet up that outrageous impoftor Ma-
" hornet-, all to facilitate their main plot/' —
See Hutch. Abr. p. 205.
So when the others had framed a plan to
eftabhih a worldly kingdom, and to wield a
Jeep t re of defpotifm over their fubjects the
laity — when they faw the evidences againft
their whole plan, which were contained in,
the facred writings — they turned Commenta-
tors,
[ 348 ]
tors, Expojitors, Traditioni/is, &c. patched up
Bulls, Decrees, Canons, Synodal Determinations,
&c. and fet up that outrageous impoftor the
Pope, to facilitate their main plot againft the
liberties and properties, the understandings
and confidences of mankind.
Whereas, in truth and in fact—
The whole of Jehovah's infti tut ions was
renewed to the Ifraelites at mount Sinai, mi-
nutely defcribed and recorded in the law
committed to their cuftody, and ordered to
be preferred as a facred depofitum for the be-
nefit of all nations — the long fucceffion of
prophets confirmed its liability and impor-
tance— and the whole of the New Telta-
ment refers us to no other foundation for
the truth and obligation of all its precepts.
It follows then, that, as Jehovah created
man upon the earth— commanded the increafe
and propagation of the human fpecies — or-
dained the means of it — circumfcribcd thofe
means, by pofitive ftatutes, as to His infinite
wifdom feemed good — no man or men, of
any defcription * or charabler whatfoever, hath
or have any power or authority whatfoever,
to add to, diminifh, change, or alter, one
&n$tj}atute relative to marriage, as to who
* " As furely as God hath revealed true religion, {o
<c furely has he inhibited magiftrates, and all others,
" from eftablifhing any thing contrary to it, or devi-
" ating from it." Confejfional, 3d edit. p. 258. —This
appears to be fo felf-evident an axiom, as to admit of
no controverfy; and yet, as we have (ten from the fore-
going long detail of evidence, has been practically denied
for many ages.
may
[ 349 ]
may or who may not intermarry — what docs
or does not conftitute it as valid and obliga-
tory in the fight of God, either with refpect
to the parties themfelves, the lawfalnefs or
unlawfulnefs of their iffue, or any circum-
ftance whatfoever concerning the divine or-
dinance delivered in the revelation of God's
mind and willy and recorded in the book of the
law.
Much lefs, if poflible, have they any power
or authority to forbid marriage where God
hath allowed it — to make that criminal which
he hath made lawful — that nidi and void which
he hath ejiablijhed — that infamous which he
hath made honourable.
What abundant reafon then hath God to
complain of the Chrijiians, as he did of the
Jews — Ezek. v. 6. — They have refuted my
judgments , and myfiatuteSy they have not walked
in them'? And again — Amos ii. 4. — They have
defpifed the law ^Jehovah, and have not kept
his commandmentSy and their lyes can fed them
to err, after the which their fathers have
walked.
Many other remarks might be made from
the foregoing long detail of inconteftible evi-
dence, which probably have not efcaped the
intelligent reader s ohlervation; I do net at
all wifh they mould, as each of them muft
tend to difcover the frauds and fallacies which
have been made ufe of, to wean the minds of
people from the great and only fiandard of
all truth, and to conciliate a reverence and
efteem for the traditions and inventions of
men ;
[ 35° 3
men; thus to emancipate them from the
commandments of God, and to bring them
into that worfe than JEgyptian bondage, a
blind fubmiffion and fubjugation of their un-
derftandings to the Jleight of men, and cunning
craftinefs whereby they lie in wait to deceive.
Eph. iv. 14.
The undeniable proofs of this, are too
glaring to be denied, with the leaft pretence
to fairnefs; and afford a very ufeful caution,
againft believing things to be true, becaufe
they make a part of a popular fyflem, or of a
national religion. We have feen how many
forgeries and lyes have grown into credit and
reverence, merely from their introduction by
men in power, and their having acquired con-
fequence by length cf time. We have feen
how the coercive terror of capital punimment
has been made ufe of to inforce a veneration
for faljboody and the terrors of herefy and
fchifm brandifhed at the heads of thole, who
have dared to oppofe fcripturt to human tra-
dition. We have ieen laws of God annihi-
lated, and laws of men put in their place.
We have feen Cbrijlianity made incompati-
ble with the Jlatutes cf Heaven, and the Jla-
tutes of Heaven repealed by PopijJy canons,
and acts of parliament. All this, and much
more, ejufd. nee, we have feen. — Heave it
to the common fenie and reafon cf every ju-
dicious and obfervant perfon to determine —
what wejtiilfee. — And to Him, who is alone
the fupreme difpofer of all events — whofe ways
are not cur ways, and whofe thoughts are not
our
f 351 3
*ur thoughts — do I moft humbly, fubmif-
fively, and unrefervedly, leave whatever y7W/
befeen hereafter : moft aiTuredly believing, as
moft fully perfuaded, let appearances be what
they may to the eye of human wifdom, that
a time will come, when the kingdoms of this
world — however now divided by human po-
licy— deceived by eccleliaftical contrivance—
impofed on by prieftcraft — rhifled by folly—
or blinded by fuperftition — will become the
kingdo?ns ^Jehovah and His Christ — and
that the earth fiall be filled with the knowledge
of Jehovah, as the waters cover the fea. See
If. xi. 9. — Rev. xi. 15. Then will tht fong
of Mofes the fervant of God, and the fong of
the Lamb, be found in exadl harmony with
each other — and the burden of both be —
Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord
God Almighty ! — -jufi and true are thy ways,
thou King of Saints! Rev. xv. 3. '
CON-
[ 352 1
CONCLUSION.
TH E author having now finifhed his
defign, in laying before the public as
complete ajyjlem, as he was able to colled
and lay together, for the prevention of adul-
tery, and of the public projlitution of women —
which faid fyftem is founded folely on the
bafis of the divine law — he defires to con-
clude the whole, with fome very effential
parts of his creed relative to the fubje&s
herein treated.
i. He does moft folemnly believe — that the
moral laws and precepts contained in thePcTZ-
tateuch, ox Jive books of Mofes, were defigned
for the moral government of God's people in
all ages of the world.
2. That all the Jlatutes therein, relative to
marriage, and all that concerns it, as to it's
nature and efence, are the fixed and immu-
table determinations of Infinite Wifdom.
3. That no power on earth can lawfully
add to, or diminijh from them, a fingle jot
or tittle.
4. That all variations, and departures from
them, are fo many infults againft the power,
wifdom, holinefs, and purity of the Divine
Lawgiver.
5. That all human contrivances to evade
their force, and to deftroy their influence
and obligation — which were begun by primi-
tive Chrijlians and fathers — carried on and
completed
[ 353 J
completed by Chrijlian churchmen, whether
Popijlj or Protejlant — are fo many inftances of
human corruption and depravity, which cannot
admit of much greater aggravation, than hav-
ing appeared in the world under the fpecious
garb of piety arid fanclity, while they are
ruining the bodies and fouls of mankind-
hut more efpecially of the female Jex—znd
letting the laves, made by the God of nature,
for their fecurity and protection, at open de-
fiance.
6. That all thefe pofitions are proved in
the foregoing volumes, and abundantly con-
firmed by every day's experience.
7. That, as far as the divine law is adopted
into our municipal Jyjl em, 10 far will the ruin-
ous and deftructive crimes of adultery and
profiitution of women be checked — but by no
other means which ever has, or can be, in-
Vented.
8. That wre are all more the creatures of
tufiom than we are aware of — that the human
mind, having no innate ideas of right and
wrong, becaufe it has none of that law which
eonftitutes them, takes up with the fir ft that
offer themfelves to its obfervaticn -, thefe grow
up with it, and form themfelves into theje
various modes of opinion, which divide one
part of mankind from another in their fenti-
rncnts and judgments of things; thefe are
improved into habits by education and ufage,
and hence arife the oppofition and difficulty
which truth meets with, when it prefents it-
iclf, on its own iirnple authority, to the
Vol. III. A a, mind
t 354 1
mind of man, and would fupplant thofe pre-
judices which are found to have ufurped its
place and influence within the foul.
9. That the Hebrew tongue, in which the
divine law is revealed and recorded, has one
fixed and determinate meaning, with regard
to the things therein contained ; and, that
not a fingle word, phrafe, fentence, para-
graph, verfe, or chapter, has any other mean-
ing now, than when fir ft written by the facred
pen-men — that every part of the creation,
whether animate or inanimate, is juft what it
is there defcribed, and that all the moral ac-
tions of men are good or evil, only as they are
conformable, or not, to the true intent and
meaning of the unchangeable laws of the
Creator there recorded. — Therefore,
10. To imagine that the fun which rules
cur day, and the moofi which governs our
night, are not the fame identical lumi?iaries
of which we read in the Hebrew Jcriptures,
is not more falfe, abfurd, and unwarranted,
than to fay that ?narriage, under all the forms
in which it exifted under the difpenfation of
God, as revealed in the Hebrew Jcriptures,
and there recorded, is not now one and the
fame in "God's light. And we are no more
authorized tofuppofe, thai it is in the power
of man to create a new Jun or moon, than we
are, that he can make marriage, as in God's
fight, any thing elfe than what God Himfelf
hath made it in His moft holy law. — To affert
that there is any law, holier, purer, 'wijer,
or better adapted to regulate the commerce of
9 the
[ 355 ]
tbefexes, than that which Jehovah published
at Mount Sinai y is horrible blafphemyl
ii. The author doth molt certainly be-
lieve, that as the facramentsof the Lord's Sup-
per and Baptifm have been corrupted by anti-
cbriflian inventions— fo the ordinance of mar-
riage) as appointed by God » and regulated by
His laws, hath fhared the fame fate — and that
nothing can reftore any of thefe to their pri-
mitive fimplicity, but an unreferved fubmif-
fion of the minds of men to the pure and
perfect word of God.
12. He doth alio believe* that if ever the in-
creafing ruin and defolation of the fex, the
lower orders thereof efpecially, mould be
deemed, as it ought, aferious object of par-
liamentary confederation, as a national evil of
the molt defolating and dejlruilive kind, not
only to individuals, but to the public in gene-
ral— if ever the legiflature mould think, with
Baron Montefquieu, that — ° in a popular itate,
" public incontinence may be regarded as the
u great^ft of misfortunes" — if ever they
wifh to difcourage and check adultery, whore-
dom, and celibacy, which are the caufes of
depopulation, and of other numberlefs evils; and
to promote the intereits of cbajlity and marri-
age, which are the approximate caufes of
population, and of other numberlefs benefits — no
plan that ever can be deviled or thought of
will ever anfwer thefe moft deiirable ends,
like that exhibited to us in the divine law,
which has been ponfidered and let forth in
thefe volumes, and which, however anti-
A a z quated
[ 356 ]
quated and laid afide by the craft and policy
of Popifh contrivance, to anfwer the piir-
pofes of priejily importance, ambition and
wealth, is yet, as it was, and ever will be, the
only rule of right — millions have had caufe to
curfe the day when it was laid afde — millions
would have reafon to blefs the day when it
fhall be reftored.
As for the experiments which have been
try'd, to improve upon the difpenfations of the
Most High, with refpeft to the moral go-
vernment of mankind, they certainly have
precedents of a very early date. They began
with our firjl parents, and have been handed
down to us in regular fucceffion for near fix
thoufand years. The Jewijh church was very
fertile in fuch experiments, as its hi/lory, both
in the Oldtejlament and New Tefament, abun-
dantly informs us. As for the Chrijlians, they
have not been behind hand; they have always
had projectors, of very high and diftinguifhed
abilities in that way — their projects and ex*
periments, with refpeft to God's laws which
were to regulate the commerce of the fexes,
have been fet forth without referve in thefe
volumes, but more efpecially in the firjl chap-
ter of this — and what has been the con-
fequence? — We have almoft loft fight of
that fijnple, plain, and faint ary Plan, held
forth to us in the divine law — and are now
under zco??iplicated, dark, and deJlruBhe Sys-
tem, which, inftead of refembling the plain
and evident way of duty pointed out to us in
the Jlatutes of Heaven, rather may remind
us
f 357 ]
us of Virgil's account of the Cretan labyrinth,
where the devouring monfter Minotaur was
kept —
Ut quondam Creta fertur labyrinthus in altay
Parietibus teclum cacis iter^ ancipitemque
Mi lie viis babuijje dolum; qua figna ftquendi
Falleret indeprenfus et irre?neabilis error,
JEn. v. 588.
Like as the Cretan labyrinth of old,
With wandering wave, and many a winding fold,
Involv'd the weary feet without redrefs,
In a round error which deny'd recefs.
DRYDEtf*
Fable tells us, that Ariadne, the daughter
of King Mi/tos, gave Thefeus a clew, by which
he found his way out of the labyrinth, after
having (lain the Minotaur.
If thefe volumes mould be made inftru-
mental to our deliverance, by unravelling the
iniquitous myjlery of human fy Items refped-
ing marriage, and by checking the devia-
tions of thofe worji and maft deftructive of
monfter s * -—adultery and female frojiitut 'ion —
their end will be anfwered.
SOLI DEO GLORIA.
f See before vol, ii. p. 104. ift. edit.— -p. 98. 2d. edit.
Aa3 ADDENDA
C 358 1
ADDENDA.
Note, vol. i. p. 263. 1. i — 4. ift edit.
p. 250. 1. 7 — 10. 2d edit.
T N the Quatfl. et Refponf. ad Orthodox,
■*■ ufually printed with the works of Jujlin
Martyr, the former part of the 13 2d ^uejiion
runs in Englifh thus :
" If, according to the Mofaic law, a man
*' taking the wife of his brother, who was
*c dead without iffue, begat ijjice of her, which
" ifjiie by nature were his, but by the law
€€ his brother's — how could this be other-
" wife than wrong, in cafe the furviving
" brother had another wife, together with
tc whom he alfo took the relict of his de-
€t ceafed brother ?"
THE ANSWER.
Ty voiih julvj tasAuffflvrto ~'s; I<Tpxvj\i7Xc ywxixx
7 w.v, ei EwAo/vtc, « fxovov evyyevtix, CLM& K&l
aiyjj.x^r^a kcli ttolMxx&x' ucsv xpx gltottcv, »Jfij
&.\0L7TTei EK TH yWXMX £7Ti yi'VXliU ICL&iV xfohCfioV Ttf
leKEVTVlKCTCC, 72 VCJUL8 JM.V) KX7XhV0fX€VS' TX(TX yXp i
tfKT/rt KTJ 7tf TXpxCcCffSi 78 VCU8 KXiig'XTXt .
" Since:
f 359 ]
" Since the law did not prohibit the
" Ifraelites, if they chofe, from taking a
" wife, not only of their own nation, but
" likewife a captive and a concubine, there
" could, therefore^ be nothing wrong or in-
€t jurious in a man's taking the relic! of his
" deceafed brother to a wife he had before ;
" for the law was not hereby violated : for
u all wrong conjijls in the violation of the
" law."
Vol.ii. 215, n. iftedit. — 2d edit. 197,11.
In the time of the troubles in the laft cen-
tury, by an ordinance of Augufi 1653, 'twas
enadted,
" That all perfons intending to be mar-
tc ried, mall come before fome jujlice of the
"peace; and if there appear no reafonable
cc caufe to the contrary, the marriage fhall
" proceed in this manner : — The man to be
" married, taking the woman by the hand,
" mail plainly and diftin&ly pronounce thefe
t€ words : — I A . B. do, in the prefence of
" God, the fearcher of all hearts, take thee
" C. D. for my wedded wife; and do alfo,
" in the prefence of God, and before thefe
'* witneffes, promife to be unto thee a loving
" and faithful hufband. — The woman pro-
" mifes, in the fame form, to be a loving,
"faithful, and obedient wife, And it is
•■ further enadted, That the than and woman
" having made fufficient proof of the con-
A a 4- • u lent
[ 3*o ]
" fent of their parents and guardians (if un*
" der the age of twenty-one years) and ex-
€t preffed their confent unto marriage, in the
u manner and by the words aforefaid, before
" {uch jujiice, in the pre fence of two or more
" credible vvitnefles, the Hid jujiice may and
" {hall declare the faid man and woman to be
u thenceforth hujband and wifo; and the mar-
" riage fhall be good and effectual in law,"
&c. — The reader may find the whole at large
in Scboie/'s Collections, 2d part, p. 236.
This was called — " being married by the.
Directory " The generality of the Pre/-
byterians were then married in this manner,
enjoined by the Directory, and not by the
Liturgy, though there were fome inftances
to the contrary ; and among thefe, Mr. Ste-
phen Marfhal (who was a zealot, and had a
chief hand in compiling the Directory J did
marry his own daughter by the form pre-
fcribed in the Liturgy, being unwilling to
have his daughter " returned to him as a
*' whore, for want of legal marriage, the fta-
" tute eftablifhing the Liturgy not being re-
" pealed:" and having fo done, he paid down
five pounds to the churchwardens of the pa-
rifh, as the fine or forfeiture for ufing any
other form of marriage than that in the Z)/-
reffory. See Heylin's Ex amen Hijloricum*
p. 364. — Grey Hud, vol. ii. p. 177, n.
By this we may perceive, that thsy did
not attempt the invalidation of marriages, be-
caufe not folemnized according to a oarticu-
\\\x form or ceremony.
la
[ & ]
In the above, there was an effeclual care
taken of the civil contract-, and, by placing it
in the hands of the civil magifir ate, it was re-
ftored to its ancient and proper jurifdidtion.
Vol. iii. p. 271. 1. 13, 14.
I mentioned vol. i. p. 79. 2d edit. n. this,
third volume, in which I faid it would ap-
pear, that the " making marriage under the
€f New Teftament different from what it was
M under the Old Teftament, is true genuine
'* Popery " — I appeal to the above fentiment,
or rather dogma, for the fulfilment of what
the reader was to expecl.
In this there are three proportions, every
one of which is a downright faljhood —
1 . " That marriage is zjacramcnt" of the New
Teftament. 2. ** That it was inftituted by
" Christ." 3, " That it is appropriated
" to Cbriflians? — and, of courfe, the whole
difpenfation of marriage, as revealed in the
Old Teftament, is as much antiquated and
laid aftde, as the rites of circumcifion and the
pajjbver.
Now, how does the matter really ftand ?
It is furely evident, that the Jpecific ordinance
by which the man and woman become one fie jl;,
is fet down Gen. ii. 24 ; and that the in-
dijjolubility of the union arifes from what is
there faid.
Our Saviour, fo far from making the
leaft alteration in this point, recites this very
pafiage — Matt. xix. 5. — and infers from it
(v. 6.)
[ & ]
(v. 6.) the indiflblubility of the contract, in
order tofhew the Jews the unlawfulnefs and
inefficacy of their wanton and arbitrary <//-
vorces.
St. Ptfz//ftates the very fame paffage, as his
authority for determining the abufe of the
marriage-ordinance, in the illicit commerce
with an harlot, i Cor. vi. 15, 16.
The fame apojile cites alio the fame paf-
fage of Gen. ii. 24. in order to prove what
conftitutes marriage, fo as to render it an em-
blem of the union between Christ and his
church. See Eph. v. 31.
After all this plain, clear, unequivocal
evidence, what mail we fay to the pofition,
that — "marriage under the New Teftament
<c is different from what it was under the'
€* Old Teftament ?" — We may as well fay,
that" arithmetic has changed its calculations ;
that among the ancient Jews two and two
made only Jour 9 but now they make Jijty .
Note, vol. iii. p. 275. I. 23 — 26.
Dr. Grey, in his edition of Hudibras9
among many other curious and inftrudtive
anecdotes, which are well worthy the reader 's
perufal, has the following : — Part iii.
Canto i. L 627, 628. n.
<c The Emperor Leo (as my very worthy;
<c and learned friend Dr. Dickins, profeflbr of
" civil law in the Uniierjity of Cambridge,
'* informs me) allowed a jeparation in the
V cafe of incurable madnejs.
«' Per
[ 363 ]
" Per conjugium, inquiunt, in corpus co-
" i'erunt, oportetque membrum alterum al-
M terius morbos perpeti: & divinum prscep-
" turn eft quos Deus jimxerit, ne Jeparenturm
" Praeclara quidem hcec & divina, utpote
ft quae a Deo pronuntiata funt : verum non.
<c rede neque fecundum divinum propofitam
" hie in medium adferuntur: fi enim matri-
" monium talem ftatum confervaret, qualem
f< ejus in principio pronuba exhibuiifet, quif-
" quis fepararet, improbus profedto efiet, ne-
" que reprehenlionem effugeret.
" Jam verb cum prae furore ne vocem
'* quidam humanam a muliere audias, nedum
" aliud quidquam eorum quae ad oble&amen-
" turn & hilaritatem matrimonium largitur
" ab ilia obtineat : quis adeo acerbum hor-
** rendumque matrimonium dirimere nolit ?
" Ea propter fancimus, &c. ut fi quando poft
*c initum matrimonium, mulier in furorem
" incidat, ad tres annos infortunium maritus
*'c ferat, maeftitiamque tolleret : & nifi inter
" ea temporis ab ifto malo ilia liberetur, ne-
4t que ad mentem redeat ; tunc matrimonium
" diveilatur, maritufque ab intolerabili ilia
" calamitate exoneretur. Imp. Lconis No-
" vella CXI.
" Per Novel/am Sequent em: Si maritus per
" matrimonii tempus in furorem incidat in-
" tra quinquennium matrimonium folvi ne-
" queat : eo autem elapfo, fi furor eura ad-
" hue occupet, folvi poffit.
" By marriage, they fay, there is a bodily
u union, and it behoveth the cne member to
« bear
[ 364 ]
" bear the difeafes of the other: and it is a
" divine precept — thofe whom God bath joined
" together, let them not be put a/under. A
V moft excellent and divine faying, as pro-
ts nounced by God ; but here it is not
u brought into the queftion (of divorce)
M rightly, nor according to the divine pur-
u pofe : if the matrimony remained as at the
M beginning, maintaining the fame ftate as
** when the woman was firft a bride, who-
** ever mould feparate, would indeed be
" wicked ; nor would they efcape reprehen-
" fion. But when, through madnefs, you can-
" not hear from the woman even a human
%g voice, nor can the hufband obtain any of
" thofe things which matrimony beftows for
M delight and comfort, who would not de-
" ftroy fo bitter and horrible a marriage ?
" Wherefore we ordain, &c. that if, at any
" time after the marriage, the wife falls into
" madnefs, the hufband (hall bear his mif-
" fortune and grief for three years — and, un-
" lefs (he fhall be delivered, and return to
" her right mind in that time, then the mar-
iC riage mall be diffolved, and the hufband
" releafed from fo intolerable a calamity.
" If the hufband falls into madnefs during
" the coverture, the marriage cannot be dif-
f< folved within Jive years ; but, that time
" being elapfed, if the madnefs ftill pofierTes
" him, it may be difTolved."
The Emperor feems to have carried his
notions and allowance of abfolute divorce
farther
[ 3*5 ]
farther than the fcriptures warrant ; yet on
teafonable proof of the above fads, ajlpara-
ration, but fo as that the man fhall ftill main-
tain and provide for the Woman as his wife,
might furely be allowed ; as alfo, that he
might marry another, not only on account
of madnefs, but where through other difeafes,
or unavoidable caufes of feparation, the man
ceafes in fadt to have any one end of mar-
riage.
The allowance of abfolute divorce on the
madnefs of the hujband, or other caufe of
unavoidable feparation from him, is a very
different que/Hon, and does not appear to have
any warrant whatfoever from God's word*
See Rom. vii. 3. 1 Cor. vii. 11.
Here I would add another remarkable
matter, which occurs among the canons of
Gregory II. and fhould have had a place be-
fore, p. 84. but was omitted by millake,
though it is mentioned in Du Pin.
" Si mulier injirmitate correpta non valuer it
94 debit um viro reddere, quid ejus faciat jugalis?
<c — bonitm ejfet fi Jic permaneret : Sed quia
M hoc magnorum efty Hie qui je non potent co?i~
" tinere, nub at rnagis : — non tamen Jubfiiti
u opem fubtrahat ab Hid quam hijirmitas prcc -
u pedit, non detejlabilis culpa excludit"
" If a wife be feized with fome infirmity,
M fo that flie be not capable of rendering the
N debt to the hufband, what fhould he do ?
" — It would be good if he remain as he is.
u But becaufe this is very difficult, he- who
c- cannot contain* had btntr /v:irry. Not
u that
[ 366 ]
*' that he is to withdraw the affiftance of
u his fupport (and maintenance) from her
M whom infirmity hinders (/. e. as aforefaid)
" even fome deteftable crime does not ex-
" elude this."
Though this be the language of a Pope of
Rome, it is yet fo agreeable to nature, rea-
fon, and fcripture — to the moft apparent dic-
tates of common fenfe, and underjlanding —to
every principle of jujlice and equity— and is
ib calculated to prevent numberlefs evil
confequences; which muft flow from a con-
itrained, involuntary, and unnatural celibacy —
it is as much to be lamented, that the church
could ever alter or abrogate this canon, as it
is to be wondered at, that there mould be
found a Chrijiian legiflature which has not
adopted it. Well — perhaps— «£tf ut male
nunc, & olimfic erif.
[ 367 ]
To RICHARD HILL, Esq^.
My dear Sir,
I AM entirely of opinion with you, that
religion, inftead of leflening our ideas
of friendfoip, tends to exalt them ; for
which reaibn, it gives me a concern which
I cannot exprefs, to be forced into a retnon-
Jlrance againft any conduB of yours, with
whom it has been my honour and happinefs,
for many, many years, to live on a footing of
the moft difinterefted, tender, and affectionate
friendfhip. I hope I fhall not forget this in
any thing which I may fay on the prefent
occafion.
It is not my purpofe to Write a regular an-
fwer to your late book, intitled, the " Blef-
" J*ngs of Polygamy, &c." In the firft place,
that, in general, appears to me fo completely
done to my hands already, in the publication
which you attack, that there is little reafon
for me to repeat the trouble ; and, if you
will read the books which you ceiUure, with
more attention than you feem to have done,
I am not without hopes, that your candour
may lead you to be of that opinion.
However, you muft give me leave to aflc
you, in the firft place, how far it is recon-
cileable to thofe notions of urbanity and polite-
nefs, v/hich I have fo often obierved to be
remarkably confpicuous in Mr. Hill, to put
any man's name to a work, where tae au-
thor
f
I 368 ]
thor has not done it himfelf? — but, more
efpecially, where there is little other inten-
tion, than holding forth the man and his
ivork in the light in which you have been
pleafed to exhibit your old and faithful friend
*— that is to fay, in as injurious a point of view-
as he could well be placed, fo far as relates to
the publication which you cenfure.
In the next place, I would obferve, that I
cannot think it very confident with that
warmth and delicacy of friend/hip, which has-
ib long fubiifted between u% to fay nothing
to your old friend of your intention to pro-
duce fuch an attack upon him in the face of
the public, before you fent it to the prefs :—
Would it not have been more friendly, not to
fay more like yourfelfzs a gentleman, to have
(hewn him the manufcript, heard and weighed
maturely his objections, and to have cor-
rected the language or fentiment, where you
might have been convinced that your pen, in
fotne places, had hajlily overleaped the bounds
of that refpecl and regard which you profefs
for the Author in other parts of your per-
formance ? As far as I know myfelf, and can
judge from my prcfent feelings, I could not,
on any account, have published fuch a book
againft you$ without firit fhewing it to you,
and liftening, 1110ft attentively, to whatever
might tend to correct any afperity of expref-
fion, or any perfonal refection, which might
hurt you in your own mind, or injure your
character in the fight of the world.
// is not an enemy that has done me this
dijhonour,
t 369 ]
di [honour y &c. — As to your animadver/ions on
Tbelyphthora, I could wifh for your own fake,
as well as mine, that you had taken more
time to confider them before they were pub-
lifhed, and to have reflected how far they
agreed with the fubjects of them in point of
accuracy. For inflance — you certainly at-
tempt to charge the author <c with recom-
tc mending an iridi) criminate and unlimited
*' practice of polygamy, and wanting a law
" to eflablifh it." — This, though not the
very words, is yet the undoubted fubjlance of
your accufation on the point, as it may be
fairly deduced from your book.— How is this
confiftent with the following pafTage, viz.
" As to Polygamy — which is certainly one
" link in the chain of God's difpenfations,
<c as fo abfolutely neceffary to prevent, in
" many cafes, the defertion and proftitution
" of women, as well as to preferve men from
" vice and profligacy, under various circum-
" fiances of unavoidable difficulties and
" temptations, which necejj'ary feparatio?i
" may render them liable to (fee before,
" vol. i. p. 181 — -2) the caufes of which
" may fall fhort of being grounds for utter
" divorce — it is, coniidered in itfelf, one of
€€ the laft things which a man mould think
" of, who wifhes and aims at the happinefs
" of a domeftic life. The weight and bur-
" den of a double family, the diffractions
** which moft probably muft be the effect of
" jealoufy between the women, each envying
" the other her fhare in the huiband's af-
Vol, III. B b " feftions',
[ 37° 1
" fe&ions, muft be productive of difputes,
(< quarrels, and perpetual difquiet. We fee
" this to have been the cafe even among the
" beft of people, who were polygamijls. —
%€ What were Abrahams trials, which arofe
M from his connections with Hagar ? — What
" thofe of Jacob, from the jealoufy and
" difcontent of Leah and Rachel? So Elka-
" nah fuffered not a little, at the treatment
" which his favourite Hannah received from
" her rival Peninnah — and, indeed, it is fo
" much in the nature of things, that matters
" mould fall out alike in all times, where there
" are the fame caufes to produce the fame
" effects, that one mould imagine moft men,
" who confulted the peace, quiet, and com-
" fort of themfelves and families, would fub-
" fcribe to Horace's
" Felices ter & amplius
** ghtos irrupt a tenet copula \ nee mails
" Divulfus querimoniis,
<6 Suprema citius folvet amor die,
*c Thrice happy they, in pure delights,
* c Whom love with mutual bonds unites $
<c Unbroken by complaints orjlrife,
u Ev'n to the latejl hours of life,
" Francis.
" It is moft readily to be allowed, that
41 fuch people can have nothing to do with
" the fubje<ft of polygamy" [" Except it be
" to abhor and execrate the very thought of
€< it." 2d edit.] SeeThelyph. vol. ii. 187 — 191.
I might alfo refer you to p. 378, n.
which
t 37* 1
which ftands thus : — €€ Doubtlefs in this,
" as in all things elfe, which, however law-
"Jul or innocent in themfelves, may become
44 Jinful by abufe or excefs, we may fay with
" Horace-
Eft modus in rebus— funt certi denique fines ,
£)uos ultra citraque nequit conjijlere re Hum,
<c Some certain mean in all things may be found,
<c To mark our virtues, and our vices bound.
" Francis.
" That polygamy is lawful in itfelf, and in
" many cafes expedient (See before 192 — 3, n.)
c< in fome duty (See vol. i. p. 297 — 8.)
" none can deny, who will yield to the tef-
" timony of the fcriptures and plain matter
" of fadt. But where it is entered upon
" with no other view than to pamper the ap-
" petite, and to indulge a love of variety, it
" degenerates into evil ; and feems to be
" to marriage, what gluttony and drunkennefs -9
" and excefs of apparel, are to food and rat**
" ment — a Jinful, becaufe a forbidden, abufe
" of lawful and neceflary things."
I am much concerned, Sir, that I am con-
ftrained to remind you of thefe paffages fj
more fo, that they did not prevent thejeve-
rity of fome of your cenfures on the author ',
as a maintainer and recommender of indifcri*
minate and unlimited polygamy — an idea as
much abhorred by him as by yourfelf
Again — you feem to argue, as if the author
meant to difparage marriage-ceremcm, or to
difpute the necejjity of it ; though afterwards,
indeed, you do allow, that he contends for
B b 2 it.
[ 372 ]
it. — My dear Sir, you fay (p. 1 24) that you will
not difpute with me, whether <£ the mere in-
" tercourfe of a man with a virgin conftitute
" a marriage in the fight of Godt' — but as to
the neceffity of " fome folemn aft of recog-
nition, " (p. 125.) can you yourfelf fay more
than is faid in the following words ?
" Now to apply what has been faid to the
1 fubjecl of this chapter, it will be necef-
' fary for us to keep the ideas of marriage,
6 as it is a divine ordinance with refpedt to
' God, and as it is a civil cont raft wTitb refpect
1 to the public, diftincT: in our minds. It is the
' Jirjt only which conftitutes the indiflblu-
1 ble union in God's fight, but it is the^/?-
* cond which recognizes and ratines that
c union in the light of the world ; and this
' is a fort of fecurity which (as fo much de-
' pends upon it with refpedl to fociety) the
* world has a right to require, confequently
6 to exadt ; and thole who wilfully refufe to
' give it, deferve to lofe every privilege
' and benefit which are annexed to it.
' Were the confidences of men what they
' ought to be, the fear and love of God
* would reign within them, and a ftridt ob-
1 fervance of his commandments be the
1 meafure and rule of all their dealings to-
' wards God and each other. But in this
1 corrupt ftate of things, this is not the
' cafe, therefore human laws are neceffary
* to enforce the divine law, in no inftance,
1 perhaps, more necejfary than in the cafe
f before us. If no contra ft of a public nature
1 was infifted upon, but all left to the pri-
" vate:
[ 373 1
<c vate agreements and determinations bc-
" tween the parties, men might take women,
" and women men, and keep or put on©
" another away as humour or fancy fuited ;
te the woman who was the wife of A, to-
f< day, might become the wife of B. to-
€€ morrow; in fhort, it is impoffible t©
Ki conceive y much more fo to exprefs, the con-
t€ fufion which muft enfue on fuch a plan.
" Therefore, when human laws are made to
*' exact a public contract between the par-
** ties in the face of the world, which con-
" tract cannot be broken nor diffolved but
" for the one caufe which God's word al-
" lows, fuch laws are in affirmance of the
" law of God, and therefore are righteous
M laws; and, as fuch, ought to be obeyed;
" nor have any perfons a right to that refpect,
" and to thofe privileges, which are due to
*' married perfons, who defpife fuch an or-
" dinance of man as creates a civil co?itra£i
" in the fight of the world, by way of re-
" cognition of that private contract which
" they have entered into between themfelves
" in the light of God. Thofe who wilfully
" live together, as man and wife, without
M this, are defer vedly reckoned infamous,
" and as defervedly cut off from the benefits
*' of marriage, fo far as civil fociety is con-
" cerned : therefore to difcourage, and even
" to puniflo, fuch a conduct, is certainly with-
" in the authority of all civil government,
t nor would any government be juftified in
*' not doing it, for without this, men and
B b 3 " women
[ 374 3
women would be living like the hearts of
the field. No fault is therefore to be
found with our laws for enforcing the
public recognition of God's ordinance,
but for not enforcing it in all cafes, 2nd for
making it«#//and void in any, where God's
law hath not made it fo. Inftead of (hut-
ting up the ecclejiafiical courts againft the
complaints of deferted females, or pre-
venting their enforcement of that redrefs
which God's law commands, every court
in JFeJlminJler Hall, and every magiftrates
houfe in the kingdom, fhould be open to
them, and en pain of death, or at lead of
perpetual imprifonment till compliance,
every man w ho had feduced a woman, whe-
ther with or without a promife of marriage,
fhould be obliged to wed * her publicly.
Under what rite or ceremony this is done,
is of very little confequence, fo that it be
effectual for the notoriety of the contract,
and the prevention of caufelefs divorce.
Thatwh ch makes the marriage before God
is the fame every where, that which re-
cognizes it in the fight of men, is, and
may be different, but all tending to one
point, that of affording to the ftate, as
well as to the parties themfelves, fuch a fe-
curity for their cohabitation, as is necef-
fary for the peace, good order, and wel-
fare of the whole. Something like what
^ Curtipis reports Alexander to have faid,
when he cut the famous Gordian knot, J
* See Tbetyfto. vol. i. p. 290, 2d edit, and n.
■" would
[ 375 1
i€ would fay on the tying the nuptial k?iot9 as
" far as public ceremony is concerned — " So
" it be done, no matter how." — Thelyph.
vol. ii. 70 — 73.
After an attentive revifal of the above, I
hope you will be very forry that you fo far
forgot yourfelf, and injured your friend, as to
tell the whole world, under your own hand —
p. 125 — that " he explodes * everything of
" this fort,' (i. e. external marriage- ceremo-
ny) " as fuperftitious prieftcraft."
Something akin to this may be found
p. 140, where you quote the following paf-
iage from the advertifement to T^helyphthoray
1 ft edition. — " In the eye of our municipal
" laws, women are of lefs confequence than
" the hearts of the field — for it is lefs penal
" to feduce, defile, and abandon to profti-
*' tution and ruin a thoufand women, mar-
" ried or unmarried, than to fteal, kill, or
" even malicioufly to maim or wound an ox
<f or a fheep. See 22 and 23 Car. II. c. 7.
<c 9 Geo. I. c. 22."
On this you comment thus : — <c I had
<( like to have faid, that there is a moft pal-
" pzblefalfity in this affertion, but I will re-
" call the word, and inftead of falfty we will
cc read fallacy" — i. e. here is not a lye, but
only an equivocation.
In order to make out this charge, which
you muft permit me to call rather of the //-
* From this, and from other Jirokes of Mr. H's very
hafty pen, I am perfectly convinced, that my friend has
fcarcely one real idea of the book which he writes
againft.
B b 4. liberal
r 376 ]
liberal kind, far more fo than I could have
thought you capable of towards any body,
much lefs towards me — you afterwards cite
only the firft fentence — <c In the eye of our
" municipal laws women are of lefs confe-
V quence than the beafts of thefield." — This,
as it Hands by itfelf, as an unlimited and
univerfal propofition, you have my free
leave to call a downright lye, and a very
nonfenfical one into the bargain — but why
did you omit what follows, which mows
that the author means this reflriBively, in a
certain refpetf, which is mentioned, and in
which refpefi the propofition is certainly true?
—it is more penal, malicioufly to hamftringvn
ox, than to " feduce, defile, and abandon to
<c proftitution and ruin a ihoufand women,
" either married or unmarried, " for the of-
fender in the firft cafe would be hanged;
and if you can prove that this would be
the fate of the feducer, &c. then I will grant
that the law is not lefs penal towards him
than towards the other.
But, my dear Sir, why would you pafs over
in filence that farther explanation of the au-
thor s meaning, which muft have met you,
vol. ii. p. 58, and fo entirely elucidates
his fentiments on the fubjeft, as furely to
leave no reafonable ground for fo heavy a
charge as you have brought againft his fnce-
rityf — the whole paffage alluded to runs
thus : —
" The more we examine the law of God,
" the more mail we be apprized of its har-
" mony
[ 377 ]
M mony and confiftency with itfelf, as well
'* as with the peace, good order, and welfare
u of human ibciety ; more efpecially with
" regard to its care and watchfulnefs over
M thofe who ftand mod in need of its pro-
" teclion, the weaker fex ; which, as matters
" are now ordered, feems of lefs value than
" the beafts of the field. If a man goes into
" his neighbour's field, and wilfully maims
<c or wounds his cattle, it is felony without be-
" nejit of clergy ; but to J educe, and debauch
" his daughter, and then to look upon him-
'* felf as free from' all legal obligation to
<e marry her, is the grand privilege which
ft he finds annexed to our repeal of the laws
" of Heaven. As for the fufferer, if me be
<( poor, fo that her maintenance depends upon
" her character, this being gone, fhe muft
u flarve for want of employment, or plunge
" herfelf into the depths of proftitution to
<e get food and raiment." I cannot perceive
any falfity or fallacy in alledging, that, in
this refpecl:, the law takes more care of a
man's ox than of his daughter, or that it is
lefs penal to debauch and abandon her to
proftitution, than to maim or wound his cattle.
What occafion was there for your talking
of rapes, attempts to commit them, &c. and
Jlealing, killings or malicioufy wounding a wife
or a virgin ? though, by the way, a man
might malicioufy wound either of thefe, and
not be liable to death, as he would in the
cafe of the cattle — and as for the action for
damages by a father, againft a man who vio-
lated
[ 378 ]
lated the ch'aflity of his daughter of<marriage~
able age, I believe, if it came out in proof,
that the " man had intercourfe with her by
" her freeji confentf — as you fpeak — he
would get little more by his aclion, than a
very large bill from his attorney, for which he
might be arrejled, and fent to gaol. Eefides,
Sir, the poorer fort of people could hardly
venture on the rifque and expence of fuch an
acftion at all. I therefore ftill venture to be-
lieve, that the Jewi/h laws — Exod. xxii. 16.
and Deut. xxii. 28, 29 — had by far more
wifdom and jujlice in them, than there is to
be found in any other plan, which mortals
ever have contrived or can devife.
You fay, p. 11 — " I would not be un-
" derflcod to infinuate, that polygamy was
M ever a part of the law of God. On the
<c contrary, there is no command whatever
<c which injoins it, or even leans towards it."
— What think you of the Levirate, or law of
marrying the brother s wife ? — See Bp. Burnet's
opinion, Thelyph. vol.i.p. 313. — Again, what
fay you to Exod. xxii. 16. and Deut. xxii.
28. 29 ? Hear your friend M. Xuther—
<e Nota funt jura Mofaica, de fratris defunfti
" uxore, & de filia correpta invito patre, quae
" cogunt plurium ejfe uxor urn virum. And
" again, in Comment in Gen. in propos, &
16 in libr o de bigamia epifcoporutn. We find that
" Luther afferted — Polygynceciam non effe
" contra legem naturce ; aut moralem, aut ipfam
c f fcripturamfacram ."See Pol. Tri. T h e s i s , x c .
— I fhould recommend it toyou, not tobeover
fond
[ 379 3
fond of calling either Luther or Zuingliu*
(See Thelyph. vol. i. 406, n.) as witneffes
for your Jbitiments, or honeft M. Bucerus, or
indeed any of the chief Reformers.
P. 1 3. — »Prov. v. 16. relates to the children,
fo no occafion for the Kennicottian not :
The omiffion of which is certainly not ex-
actly of the fame kind 2.% " the printer, whom
" Laud fined," was guilty of ; fince in Prov.
all the printed editions which I have feen,
and among them the ComplutenJiany want the
Hebrew word for not.
P. 16, 17. — Inceftuous marriages would
ftill have been lawful, if not expref sly forbidden
by God — prove that polygamy has been fo for-
bidden. (But why mult the marriages im-
mediately after Noah's, flood be incefluous—
might not all his grand-children marry their
firjl coujins?)
P. 18.— A comparifon of Numb. xv. 32,
33, &c. with Exod. xxxv. 2. xvi. 23.
fhews the reafon of the feverity againft the
flick-gatherer, — The law againft lighting a
fire on the fabbath feems only temporary ,
while they were fed miraculoufly with the
Manna.
P. 29. — What authority has Mr. H. to
fubftitute, in Exod. xxi. 8. humbled her9
for dealt deceitfully with her. — A knowledge
and proper regard to the Hebrew Bible would
here have been of ufe to him. — The textual
reading of verfe 8, in all the printed Bibles
which I have feen (efpecially the Complutenjian)
\$ " who hath not betrothed her $ ' and the
2 words
[ 38° J
worcU at the end of ver. 8. fhouldhave been
rendered — in dealing, or to deal deceitfully with
her, Thefe remarks give a different view of
the pafiage. — Ver. 9. " If he have betrothed
her (his female fiave) to his fori," is a very dif-
ferent cafe from " a man's enticing a virgin
and lying with her" In the former inftance,
the man treats the maid as his property, as
fhe truly was (for he had bought her, ver. 7 ;)
but even here God provided a remedy, that
the majlers fon, to whom me had been be-
trothed, mould not treat her otherwife than
any other wife. If he would not be a huf
band to her, fhe mould not be a wife to him.
Such is the equitable and benign fpirit of
God's law by Mofes ! .
P. 30. — What think you of our Lord's fu-
perfeding the judicial law of retaliation, to
be executed by the magiflrate, by that more
benign and evangelical Jyjl em which enjoins us
(in our private capacity) to return good for
evil ? I believe the law of retaliation, in all
cafes of corporal i?ijury, fan eye for an eye,
&c.) as well as in murder, would, in the
event, be a moil benign and merciful law.
P. 32, note — directly contradicts Jofephus,
who, in this cafe, is an unexceptionable
witnefs.
P. 37. " Suppofe, &c. to all his days ?" —
What ? without evidence, either pofitive or
eircumftantial, upon the mere fay-fo of the
woman or women ? Do our laws hang men
for rapes in the like nonfenfcal manner ?
P.40, — "The tyrannical authority of Sarah
over
[ 3* J
over Hagar." —Her treatment of her was ex-
prefsly approved by God himfelf, Gen. xxi.
12. though perhaps it might not be fo by a
Bolingbroke or a Voltaire. — Mr. II. in his zeal
againi): polygamy, forgets that Hagar's fon mocked
Ifaac, with whom God had eftablifhed his
covenant ; and that St. Paul calls this mocking
zperfecution, Gal. iv. 29. If Mr. H. alludes to
Hagar's firft flight from the refentment of her
miftrefs, let him advert to the foundation of
that refentment, as mentioned Gen. xvi. 4, 5,
and it will be. found a jujl one. — Her con--
tempt of Sarai, no doubt, produced a very
improper conduct towards her, as appears by
Sarai's complaint to Abram, ver. 5.
P. 87. Mr. H. miftakes the cafe of Jael,
when fhe flew Si/era, by faying fhe acted
under the immediate direction of God, of which
there is no proof. — She acted as a volun-
tary and faithful fubject of the Ifraelitifo
ftate. See Bate's note on Jud. iv. 17, who is
the only commentator I know that has ex-
plained this.
Thefe curfory remarks on particular parts
of your book, I fubmit to your revifaL
Your, taking the marginal reading of Lev.
xviii. 18. as the true fenfe of the paffage — <
and your controverting the interpretation of
Mai. ii. 15. after your acknowledgment
that you are no Hebrcean — when the right un-
derftanding of thofe texts mull depend on ihz
original words — might, perhaps, as well have
been omitted,— You remember the old pro-
verb — Ne fut or, o:c.
Your free declamation, and very extraordi-
nary
[ 382 ]
nary cafes imagined on this occafion, prove
nothing but the livelinefs of my friend, and
that it fometimes hurries him into reflefiions,
which may poffibly fall where I am fure he
does not mean they mould. The fyftem de-
fended in Tbelyphtbora is that of the Divine
law. I can meet with no fuch cafes as that
of " Lady A. and Sir Thomas A" — nor as that
of *' The humble petition of Mary, the wife
" of "John Williams* — nor of " women of the
€€ St. Giles's breed, crying murders* about the
€C ftreets," as the confequences-of the Jewijh
fyftem ; thefe are fallies of your vivacity —
which might have been as well fpared, wrhere
the queflion before you was not merely con-
cerning human judgment, but concerning a
matter allowed by the " permiffion" at leaft (as
you confefs) of God him/elf, for many ages
together.
I could wifh you to refledl on a pafTage in
Hhelyphthora, which, on this occafion, you
will give me leave to remind you of.
" To argue againft any thing, from the
€€ abufe of it, is the moft unfair of all me-
" thods of refutation. There are no abfur-
" dities, and, indeed, no lengths of impiety
€i and blafphemy, into which, by fuch means,
" we may not be carried.
" We may even difpute the wifdom and
* Alluding to the difmal ftory of that Patient Grizzel,
who is fuppofed ** to cut the throats of her hu/band and
,c his new wife, and then her own.'* P. 49. — I would
advife my friend Mr. H. to leave off Tea, efpecially in
an evening-, it is very apt, in fome conftitutions, to
create difordered Jleep and frightful dreams ; thefe leave
imprefiions on the fancy, which are not eaftly got rid of.
" holinefs
» (
<c
t 383 a
holincfs of the Creator in making the
human /pedes of different sexes — in or-
daining the means of increajing and multi-
plying the human race, by the union of
the male and female — in implanting, for
" this purpofe, a defire towards each other
" — for if all this had never been, adultery,
<< fornication , and whoredom, could not have
€l exifted : — Nay, we may carry the argu-
" ment fo far, as to conclude againft the
" Divine wifdem and holinefs in the creation it-
" felf ; for, if this had never been, no evil,
" either moral or natural, could have ever
" been known. See vol. i. pref. p. xxiii.
•* Let us go a little farther, and we fhall
€€ get mX.o fcepticifm — and from thence into
" atheiftn — like thofe
" who tread the high priori road,
<c And argue downward till they doubt of God.
"Pope.
" In 1536, Archbijhop Cranmer, who was
U projecting the mod effectual means for a
" reformation of doctrine, moved in convo-
" cation, that they mould petition the King
'* for leave to make a tranflation of the Bible.
" But Gardiner, and all his party, oppofed
<c it, both in convocation, and in fecret with
" the King. It was faid, that all the herejies,
<e and extravagant opinions, which were then
" in Germany, and from thence coming over
<c to England, fprang from the free ufe of
" the Scripture : And whereas in the May
46 laft year, nineteen Hollanders were accufed
" of
<c
a
I 384 J
u of fome heretical opinions, for which opi-
" nions fourteen of them were burnt in pairs,
" in feveral places ; it was complained,
cc that all thofe drew their damnable errors
" from the indifcreet ufe of the Scripture.
U And to offer the Bible to the whole nation,
" would prove the greateftySrar* that could
" be. See Burnet Hift. Ref. vol. i. p. 195,
(C fecond edit.
U Whoever reads with attention this ex-
cellent and entertaining hijlory, will fee
what reliance the Popijh party had on this
mode of argumentation againft the Reformers y
their writings, and indeed the Reformation
itfelf The great Sir tfhoinas More, in his
writings, exercifed all his dexterity in ex-
pofing the ill confequences that could follow
on the doBrine of the reformers. Ibid. 356.
f< Afluming certain prejudices as true,
and thence drawing conclufions, which reft
fingly on fuch prejudices, is not only un-
" fair, but is one of the meaneft and mod
" defpicable fophifms that error can have re-
u courfe to ; it is that fort of deceit and
" impofition, which " imports the mifre-
" prefentation of the qualities of things and
" aftions to the common apprehenfions of
" men, abufing their minds with falfe no-
€€ tions ; and fo, by this artifice, making
cc evil pafs for good, and good for evil, in all
" the great concerns of life. South's Ser-
*€ mons" — Thelypb. vol. ii. p. 324, n.
And indeed, my dear friend, after all you
have faid — though your hafle has made you
forget
<<
cc
i€
€t
<t
i 385 3
forget your refolution, p. 8, of making te ufe
" of ho other fvvord than that of the Spirit,
€C which is the word of God" — you yourfelf
feem to be a little fufpicious, that you may
have gone rather too far in your cenfures, with
refped: to the Old Tejiamcnt at lead. — Thus
you exprefs yourfelf.
But after all, fuppofe I cannot reconcile
this difficulty to my own apprehenfion; fup-
pofe I am fearful of faying that polygamy was
no fin under the Old Tejiament, and am alfo
fearful of aflerting that Abraham, David,
" and others, lived and died in adultery ; ftill
" why cannot I content myfelf with what is
" plainly revealed, and leave it to God to
" clear up the juftice and equity of His own
" dealings with the children of men? Secret
" things belong unto Him. Infinite wifdom
" has its own reafons for whatever it does,
" and will be accountable to none. What-
" ever be dark, this is certain, that God
" thought fit to permit polygamy under the
" law : but per -mifjion does not by any means
" imply approbation ; nay, God often per-
" mits that which, from the very holinefs of
M his nature, is his abhorrence."
Here I would juft flop to arte you, how
far from " implying approbation" it is, where
an acflion is " permitted," not merely on
fome fpecial, particular occafion, under fome
extraordinary circumftances, but uniformly
allowed, regulated by pofitive laws, and openly
pradlifed by the people of God (even the bejl
of them) through an uninterrupted fucceffion
Vol. III. C c of
[ 3§6 ]
of many ages, and no where condemned, but
in fome cafes abjblutely commanded ?
" On the other hand, it is equally certain,
" that God has thought fit to prohibit poly-
"gamy under the Gojpel — and therefore,
" though permijjion may well enough accord
" with difapprobation, yet prohibition and
<c approbation are lb far from agreeing, that
" they cannot ftand together."
Here my friend ends the controversy at once,
and has eftablifhed his point with one Jlroke
of his pen. In vain have fo many great and
learned men, fuch as Wetftein, Barbeyrac,
Bijhop Burnet, and others, given their fuf-
frages on the other fide of the queftion ; my
dew friend has decided it tout dun coup. The
excellent and learned Dr. Doddridge, whofe
very name is honoured fo defervedly by all
that remember him, and who, I believe, was
never fufpected of liccntioufnefs, either in prin-
ciple or practice, thus modeftly expreffes
himfelf in his note on i Tim. iii. 2.
" The husband of one wife.] Mr. Hallet
" and Mr. Whijlon both infer from hence,
" that fecond marriages are unlawful to the
" clergy; and the Muscovites fuppofe, that
" one wife is fo neceffary, that no man can
u become a bijhop till he be married, nor
" continue to exercife that office longer than
" his wife lives. . Perry s Riiffia, p. 230.
" But circumftances may be fo adjufted,
" that there may be as much reafon for a
" fecond marriage as for & fir ft, and as little
* ' inconvenience may attend it. Upon the
" whole,
[ 387 ]
cc whole, therefore, it feems to me moft rea-
" fonable to believe, that (as there is no ex*
u prefs precept in the Bible, requiring a man
" who had feveral wives at the time of his
" embracing Chriftianity, to divorce or dif-
" tnifs all but one) the divine wrifdom might
" judge that it was a proper medium between
<c encouraging polygamy, and too great a ri*
" gour in condemning it, to fix fuch a brand
" of infamy on this irregular practice, by
" prohibiting any man, let his character be
" ever fo extraordinary, to undertake the mi-
te nijlry while he had more than one wife,
" and to di [courage it in thofe already con-
" verted by iuch" paflages ao Maft. xix. 9.
c< and 1 Uor. vii. a."
xou find here, how cautious this learned
and reverend man was in his exprefijions* — I
will anfwer for it, that if he had Cqcii your
book, he would have been grieved, if not
Jhocked, at the peremptorinefs with which you
determine, and the levity, I had almoft faid
profane ribaldry, with which you treat a fub-
jecl: of fuch ferious importance, and vilify
a practice which you yourfelf acknowledge
" God thought fit to permit under the law,'
p. 88. How far does it become you, Sir, to
treat in fo very ludicrous a ftyle, any practice
which the God that made you thought fit to
permit ? Even fuppoiing what you take upon
you to alTert as cc equally certain," be fo — viz.
that " God, who thought fit to permit polygamy
*? under the law, prohibited it under the go/pel"
— how far is it decent to treat the fubject with
C c 2 fo
I 388 ]
fo much facetious raillery, and to charge it
with horrid confequences, which you cannot
bring a fingle inftance of from the Bible,
wherein you mitft, and indeed do, confels
the practice of it to be recorded, under the
permiffion of God himfelf?
Did you ever read Lord Bolingbroke s Letters
on the Study and life of Hijiory ? Do you re-
collect what he fays upon the fubject of
the arky and on certain other parts of the
Jewijh laws, worjhip, and ceconomy ? — And do
you think him at all the more jujiifiable, be-
caufe the ceremonial law — is waxed old, and
vani/hed away f — My friend would be one of
the laft men upon earth to excufe tht fneers of
Mr. Voltaire upon the Jews and their law, by
faying that the contents of the Diclionaire
Philofophique relate chiefly to the times of
the Old Tejlament.
I throw out thefe hints, which I hope will be
_ taken as they are meant, in a friendly view — for
I do apprehend, that whatever can, in the moft
diftant manner, reflect on the propriety and
wifdom of any of God's difpenfations, are veny
unbecoming a zealous profefor, much more,
what I fincerely believe Mr. H. to be, a
real poffefjor of true religion. For this reafon
I think it would have been full as decent to
have fpared the ironical title which you have
been pleafed to place at the head of your^r-
formance, as well as the farcafm of your dedi-
cation.
Now, my dear Sir, you have nothing to do„
but to produce fome one plain mark or ac~t
3 of
[ 389 ]
of the " disapprobation" which you fpeak of.
— You have the Bible open before you ; you
have the hiftory of near four thoufand years ;
you have numerous inflances of polygamous
contracts to refer to ;— -produce one inftance
of the divine prohibit ion or dijapprobation, and
you will have the Old Teflament on your
fide.
Then turn to Rom. vii. and you will find
the chapter begins thus — viz.
" 1 . Know ye not, brethren (for I fpeak
" to them that know the law) how that the
u law hath dominion over a man as long as
•* it liveth.
" 2. For the woman which hath an huf-
cc band is bound by the law to her hufband
" fo long as he liveth; but if the huiband
<< be dead, me is loofed from the law of her
u hufband.
** 3. So that if, while her hufband liveth,
<c (he be married to another man, (he mall
<c be called an adulterefs : but if her huf-
%t band be dead, me is free from that law -,
" fo that me is no adulterefs, though fhe be
" married to another man."
The Apojlle, you obferve, fpeaks to them
who knew the law — and, on the footing of
that law, plainly and openly delivers his- fen-
timents on the cafe mentioned. Now, if you
can find as plain, as exprefs, as unequivocal, as
indifputable an authority from the law, for
the prohibition of polygamy on the mans fide,
as in this place of the New Teflament, and
throughout the whole Old Teflament, there
C c 3 is
[ 39° ]
is on the woman s — I promife you, and I
promise the public, to retract all I have faid on
the fubject. Otherwife, I muft freely de-
clare, that I cannot believe the fcriptures
fhould be fo uniformly explicit on one Jide,
and fo dark and perplexed on the other, as to
leave us to feek the meaning of the lawgiver
out of his words (as BiJJjop Burnet fays) " by
" the fearch of logic," where a point of fuch
infinite and eternal concern is at ftake, as
whether any given practice or aftion is finful
or not, and of courfe damnable.
The Scripture, i Pet. iii. 8. fays — be piti-
ful, be courteous, Qfr.cQpovec — friendly or
friendly-minded — beijign : — I know none of my
acquaintance, in whom I have had occaiion
to obferve more of thefe tempers, than in my
beloved Mr. PI. ; and yet his zeal on the
prefent occafion has hurried him into a tem-
porary oblivion, at leaft, of thefe constituent
parts of his amiable character. He even goes
fo far as to charge his friend with " low cbi-
" can erf — this he " at firjl felt himfelf
<c hurt at" — " but I prefently recollected,"
fays Mr. H. " that he had been bred to the
" bar — and therefore paiTed it by with a
" fmile"
Now, what is this low chica?iery ? Why,
the Author of Tbelypbtbora, in full confid-
ence with the one principle which he lays
down at the beginning, and continues through-
out to the end, that the word adultery is ne-
ver ufed, but where the defilement of a mar-
ried woman is concerned — for which he has
the
[ 39i ]
the uniform and undoubted authority of the
whole Hebrew fcripture — con (trues the yvvoLmoi,
woman, Matt. v. 28. in this fenfe — and this
is done, among other reafons, for the grand
purpofe of reprefenting fcripture as confiftent
in all its parts. However, my dear Sir, what
will you fay to V/ctJlein on the place ? — He
thus explains it — " Per ywcunx autem intelU-
<4 gitur uxor altcrins" — (< By the word yj-
" wjviOL — woman — the wife of another is un-
u derftood." See Thelyph. vol. i. p. 122, n.
2d edit. When your friend has fuch re-
fpectable authorities for his interpretation of
the text, I think he might have efcaped the
charge of " low chicanery ," and a very liberal,
learned, and honourable prof efjion, have avoided
a very fevere and indifcriminate cenfure.
The mention otWetftein, who was certain-
ly the moft learned, laborious, and accurate
editor of the Greek ¥ eft anient that ever lived,
reminds me of another part of your critique,
I mean that on the word cCKkty — another — in
Matt. xix. 9, which I fay, p. 385, " may be
" conftrued in the fenfe of oLKhoTpicLv yvvcaaa"
— for this I appeal to that great man's com-
ment on Matt. xix. 9. His words are —
u AXlyv] i.e. Atoorpiav ab alio it idem viro repu-
" diatam — velab illo divert ent em ut Herodias
'* & Salome."— u Another] that is, ano-
" ther mans wife, who has been repudiated by
" him, or who has left her hulband ; as did
" Herodias and Salome.'' — Had you at-
tended to what follows in fpretfteins note on
Mark x. 11. p. 387, 391, 392, and carefully
C c 4 and
[' 392 ]
and deliberately weighed the matter, perhaps
you would have treated your friend with ra-
ther more refpeSl than you have done on this
occafion. — But if you was not of opinion with
him on the interpretation of the word fahvp,
how comes it that you pafs over in filence
his explanation of the ^oi^oltoli ? Is it quite
fair, my dear Sir, to take one argument, con-
demn it, and fo condemn the author ', without
noticing another moft material fupportofhis
opinion ? and, when Wetfteiris authority lay
before your eyes, to charge the author as
" taking the liberty to change the word cLXhw
"for cLhXoTpiav ? "
You tell us in your Poftfcript, that " the
" treatife had been publifhed full half a year
" before you could perfuade yourfelf to read it ."
Your book is dated Jan. 15, 178 1. Now the
treatife was publifhed the beginning of June
(a few days before the riots) fo that, "full
" ha If a year " brings it to pretty near the
date of your book — This accounts for the
hajle in which you wrote, and this, for many
paffages in your book, which I am fure you
would have expunged, had you taken a longer
time, either to confider the treatife you was
oppofing, the friendship of the perfon you was
writing to, or that inconfiftency with the
fweetnefs and benignity of your own difpofi-
tion, which occurs here and there throughout
your ',' affeBionate addrefs"
I cannot help alfo thinking, that, for that
"full half a year," how hard your prejudices
muft be at work — they appeared pretty
clearly
[ 393 ]
clearly in your letter of February 2, 1780,
before you had feen a line of the perform-
ance ; and when you could <( per/hade your-
*' felfto read it," did not your prejudices in-
cline you to wifh that they might rather be
jujlified than removed? — hfkyourf elf this quef-
tion — It may not be quite impoffible (if I
may judge from fome parts of your book) that
the honejly of your heart will anfwer you very
faithfully in the affirmative. — This is but
human nature. On this principle I can ac-
count for your reprefentation of our Lord's
intention, in his conduct towards the woman
taken in adultery. (John viii. 1, &c.) " It ap-
" pears clear to me," fays my friend, " that,
" under the go/pel, he, indireclly at leaft, pro-
" hibited that either party, in fuch cafe,
" fhould fuffer death, either by ftoning or
" otherwife, as they were to do by the fe-
<c verity of the Jewi/b law."
I think you may fairly be underftood to
mean by this, that Christ repealed the
judicial law of God, fo often repeated, againft
adultery. If fo, how are we to conceive of
His coming not to dejlroy the law, but to fulfil it?
Matt. v. 17. How of His declaration — that
not a jot or tittle jhould pafs from the law9 till
all be fulfilled — Matt. v. 18? — I own I cannot
help underflanding thefe folemn affertions
as totally inconfiftent with an indireel, as
with a direcJy repeal of the law.
The Pharifees, no doubt, brought this wo-
man to our Lord, with a moft malicious
and
[ 394 ]
and wicked intent — to tempt Him, that they
might have to accufe Him. vcr. 6. ,/. e. either as
an enemy to Ccejar, as taking upon Himfelf
to exercife a judicial power independent of
the authority of the Roman government, if
He ordered the woman to be ltoned to death;
or, if He did not, to incenie the people
againft. Him as a favourer of fm, and as an
enemy to the law of Mofes.
The manner in which our Lord avoided
the fnare, and the way which He took to get
rid of His malicious enemies, can never be
fufficiently admired for their wifdom and
prudence (fee ver. 7 — 9.) any more than we
can exprefs, or even conceive, the tendernefs
and compaliion with which He looked on the
ipcorjinner, who calls Him Lord (ver. 11.)
and receives her pardon from His gracious
iips. Thus have we left us on record, my
dear Sir, one inftance, among many others,
of that free and con defcen ding grace, which
is the only hope of guilty creatures like our-
felves.
But what has this to do with a repeal of
the law of God againft adultery ? If Christ
could repeal or change one judicial precept
of the moral law. He certainly could alter
any other; — but as my deir friend has no in-
clination, I am very certain, to ftir a fingle
ftep towards Socinus, I will fay no more on
the fubjecl:.
You fay, after mentioning (p. 135.) Matt.
v. 28 — and xix. 9 — : " In both thefe in-
" ftances
[ 395 1
" ftances you iofift, that a woman muft mean
<c a married woman only, becaufe otherwife
' * polygamy c a nnot fta n d."
Your allerting this as the author's reafon
for his interpretation of the word woman, in
the texts above alluded to, is another proof,
either of the hafe in which you wrote, or of
the prejudice with which you red; other-
wife you muft have adverted to a reafon of a
much more important nature, viz. — that of
exempting Christ from declaring a doctrine
in the face of the whole yewijh nation, and
this as deduced from the law of Mofes, with-
out any other foundation for what He faid,
than ufing the word adultery in a fenfe in
which it never once occurs throughout the
whole Hebrew fcripture. This I do acknow-
ledge to be faid "again, and again, and again9
in 'Thelypbthora ; and yet this reafon is over-
looked, and another fubjlituted, which is of
my friend's own invention.
My friend has fallen under a miftake,
which I find has been the cafe with many;
that is to fay, " that, on the principles of
€f Thelyphthora, there is no fuch thing as
"fornication or whoredom; confequently, that
<e fuch a character as an whore or an harlot
<l cannot exift, but every woman who goes
'f from one man to another is an adulter efs,
cc always remaining the property of thejirjl
" man that humbled her ." p. 84.
In anfwer to which, I fay — v/hat you own
you " will not difpute with me " — that the 6C in-
" tercourfe of a virgin with a man conftitutes a
** marriage
C 396 ]
" marriage in the light of God/' becaufe it is
written, they Jhall be one jiejh -, — and our Sa-
viour, from this, concludes — that what God
bath joined together, no man foall put a/under.
But I farther fay, that if this woman
departs from this jirjl man to another J the
bond with the jirjl is totally vacated by
her act of adultery ; fo that the firft man is
totally releafed from her. If afterwards (lie
goes from man to man, and fells or gives her
favours promifcuoufly to all alike, (he is
everybody s and nobody s : no man can lay any
claim to her, or look upon her as his pro-
perty, or be injured, as a given, appropriated
hufband might be, by her infidelity. She is,
in ihort, nullius inter bona, and is an whore,
harlot, or proftitute, in the true ftnfc of thofe
words.
I really feel hurt and afbamed at your ftric-
tures on the ftory of Judah and Tamar, p. 85.
You had juft written down the very words of
Gen. xxxviii. 24, where (< they who told Judah
" that Jhe was with child by whoredom" call her
his daughter-in-law^ — how fo ? — why, (lie had
been married to two of Judah" s fons, Er and
Onan, fucceflively, under the cujlom of the
Levirate ; (which was afterwards enacted into
a law, Deut. xxv. 5.) the remarkable deaths of
thefe, muft be too notorious not to be known
among the men of the place — fee ver. 21, 22 —
as alfo, that the widow of the deceafed devol-
ved on Shelah, the furviving brother, and, of
courfe, that (he was engaged to him (Comp.
ver. 11, 14.) fo that Tamar mutt, bv what die'
did,
[ 397 1
did, appear in the light of ^betrothed womanwho
had gone aftray, and liable to fuffer as an adul-
ter efs-, for, in consideration of law, fhe was a
mans wife. (Comp. Deut. xxii. 23, 24.) How
is it my friend could, with his Bible open before
him, take no notice of Tamar's real fituation, as
engaged to Sbelah — reprcfent her on the foot-
ing of a woman that had no husband — and then
call this " a fact ftanding on record, as full
" proof " of what he advances on the fubject
of fingle women f It may be laid of my
friend — Quod vult valde vult. N. B. Try
what vou can make of the maid that is not be-
trothed — Exod. xxii. j6. — and of the damfel —
Deut. xxii. 28. — Are thefe ftigmatized as
whores ?
You do mejuftice,whenyoufay, that I only
*? defend polygamy in fome rare injiances" ~
But how can it be defended in thofe rare in-
fiances, if it be againft the law of God ?
Therefore, the purpofe of 'Tbelyphthora, fo
far as it relates to the fubjecl, is to prove its
lawfulnefs, that, in thofe rare infiances, it may
be fought to, as a remedy againft the mani-
feft evils which accrue from an indif criminate
and total prohibition cf it; which I deny
to be warranted from God's word, and is no
better than the effect of men's taking the
whole ceconomy, relative to the commerce of
the /exes, out of God's hands into their own,
and of that falfe policy, fo defervedly and ably
cenfured by the Marquis ofBeccaria, in hi*
chapter on falfe notions of utility. — See Tbelypb.
vol. ii. 424, n.
The
[ 39* 1
The laft fheet of this volume was fent me
to revife, when I received your book : I
flop the prefs for the infertion of this Letter
to you ; which mufl account for my hafte in
writing, and for my not being more me-
thodical and accurate in following you
through your publication.
My full determination is, to enter in-
to no frefh controverfy with any body. I
fhall read what may be written, and thank-
ful1}- adopt into any future edition of The-
lyphihora* fuch ufeful hints as either my
friends or etiemies may occalionally throw
out.
My dear Sir, I now take my leave, with
alluring ycu, that I remain your affectionate
and faithful (tho' I am forry I muft add, on
this occafion, your highly -injured)
Friend and fervant,
March 26,
178 1. The Author.
Postscript.
YOU will pleafe to obferve, that the
references and quotations from Thelyphthora>
in this Letter, are from the firffc edition ; as
you do not appear to me to have fccn the
fecond.
I fliould
[ 399 1
I mould have noticed the que/Hon, which
you have fo often repeated — " Why write
•• Thelyphthora ? cut bono* fcribere?" — I an-
fwer — pro bono publico — To check the over-
flowings of adultery and projlitution — to efla-
bliih the means of doing this on the bafsoi the
divine law — to let forth that law, as revealed
in the Bible — to contend for its wifdom, holi-
nefs, purity, and jujlice — to fhew how the
refponJibUity which that law eftablifhes be-
tween the feducer and the /educed, would tend
to curb the licentioufnefs of what is called
gallantry, and, of courfe, to prevent the ruin
of women, with all its fearful appendages —
to affert that unrivalled fovereignty , and uncon-
troulable fupremacy of Jehovah, which mor-
tals have dared to diipute with Him for fo
many ages, by letting aiide His laws relative
to the commerce of the fexes, and fubftituting
their own inventions — to point out, from de-
ductions drawn from undeniable facis, and
from the mod inconteftible proofs, the mif-
chiefs of that irrefponfibility of men to wo-
men, and of wo xM en to men, in injlances of
the moil: important concern to both, but
more efpecially to the weaker J ex — to recom-
mend it to the legijlature to take thefe mat-
ters ferioufly under their consideration, and,
being thus apprized of the mif chief and its
remedy, if times, circumjlances, and the fit na-
tion of things will not enable them to adopt
the whole of the plan propofed, yet to adopt
* N. B. This is not my Latin,
as
[ 4°° ]
as much of it as (hall be found practicable.-—
That fomething ought to be done, none can
deny. — The book which you cenfure, has
endeavoured to point out what may be done
— and it muft be left to the wifdom, huma-
nity, and difcretion of the powers that are in
this Chrijiian land, to determine what Jhall
be done.
Though I am at prefent fo circumftanced
as not to be able to add any more, yet, my
friend, you will probably find, that forbear-
ance is no acquittance ; and on a future occa-
fion, your explanation of i Cor. vii. i — 10. or
(as you exprefs yourfelf) your — "affront put
" on the clear and plain language of the
" apoftle, where every word carries with it
" perfpicuity and conviction" (which, by the
way, is faying a good deal, on a paffage of
fcripture which, from the different interpre-
tations it has received from commentators,
feems to be one of the molt dark and difficult
parts of St. Paul's writings, efpecially as we
are notpofTefTed of the letter written to him by
the Corinthians) may probably meet with dueob-
fervation. The confidence with which you treat
this fcripture, as you do others, fingly on your
own authority, without calling in aid or
quoting a fingle commentator, hifiorian, or
other author, to juflify your peremptory deter-
minations on the fenfe of words — wherein
you contradict fome of the great eft, beft, and
moil learned men that ever lived — fhews how
far your zeal has outrun your difcretion, and
the
[ 4oi ]
the impetuofity of your imagination, the fa-
ber dictates of due * confideration and reflec-
tion.
The light in which I (hall find myfelf
obliged, in juftice to the public (to fay nothing
ofThelyphthora) to place you, as a critic and a
philologijl, will hardly be more difagreeable to
yourfelf than to the author — but be it re-
membered, Sir, that, happen what may, you
have nobody to thank for it but yourfelf.— ■
I heartily wifh, that the "fenfe" which you
exprefs (p. 148.) " of the deficiency of your
fl own abilities" (at leaft fo far as a contro-
verfy which depends on the knowledge of
the original fcriptures is concerned) had been
as real as you profefs it to be— you would
then have left it to others to attack your own
friend, while you had been following the
apoflfe's advice (1 Theff. iv. 11.) Study to $e
quiet,
I think the caricaturas which you have
Imagined for the fairfex, in the flrange ftories
which you have invented, and exhibited for
the entertainment and edification of your readers,
(the wit of every one of which contains a
very ftrong fafcafm on the Mofaic law) rep re-
fent the ladies in fuch a light of vengeance and
affdjjination, and, in fhort, as fuch a fet of Fu-
ries, as to outdo, if poffible, the three famed
daughters of Acheron and Nox : — thefe
tormented other people, but yours even hang
themjehes into the bargain. — However, put
ComQ fnakes on their heads in your next edi-
V01. IIL D d tion,
[ 402 ]
tion, and then they may pafs for the lineal
defcendents ofALECTo,MEG^RA, andTisi-
phone. I marvel not that my friend has
itill to complain with Horace,
Martiis coelees quid agam calendis ?
N. B. I did not receive your book, till
Friday, March 23d.
FINIS,
INDEX,
INDEX,
ATHENAGORAS, condemns fecond marriages, u.
Athanasius, 14.
Ambrose, Bifhop of Milan, extols virginity abov» marriage, 2 1 .
Arles, Council of, 24.
Ancyra, ib.
Austin, St. 40. — afferts that virgins fhall have a particular
reward in Heaven, 43.
defii
■ holds the defire of the fexes to each other finful, 44.
■ — recommends total continence in married p erf ons , 45,
Anjou, Council of, 54.
Agatha, Council of, 66.
Arles, ditto, 69, 168, 170.
Antisiodorum, Synod, of, 72.
Aqjjileia, Council of, 91.
At to, Bifhop of Verceil, 104.
Alfric, Arch bifhop of Canterbury, 109,'
Anselm, ditto, 125.
— - , a great oppofer of prieji? marriage, ib;
Arra6, Council of, 130.
AenhAm, 136.
Abelard, Peter, 149.
Alexander III. Pope, ib.
Avranches, Council of, 153.
Alby, ditto, 170.
Alcala, ditto, 180.
Alphonsus Tostatus, Bifhop of A-vi/a, 183,
JEgidius Carlerius, Dean of Cambray, ib.
Angers, Council of, 184.
Augsburg, Diet of, 207.
Adultery, no caufe of difTolving marriage among Chrif
tians, 217.
Dd^ Albicensesj
INDEX.
Albigensis, 173—75 — their do&rine of marriage, 243.
Alsop, quotation from, 304, n.
Absolution of the dead excommunicate, 290, n,
Arreoy, an horrid aflembly fo called, 331—2,
B
B
ASIL of Ctefarea, 15.
■ denies that the command Gen. i. 28. refpecls
the times of the New Teftament, 16.
lays a foundation for feparating the New Teftament
from the Old Teftament, 18.
Bourignon, Madame y a ftrange fentiment of her's reproved
by Mr. Lejlie, 35. n.
Benedict, St. 60.
Barcelona, Council of, 74.
Br ag a, ditto, 81.
Boniface, Archbiftiop of Mentz, 83.
Barkham stead, Council of, 87.
Berenger— his doclrine about the Eucharijl, 112.
attacked by Leo X. ib.
■ »- ■■ perfecuted by Henry I. of France, ib,
Ben even to, Council of, 121.
Bourges, ditto, 130, 172, 188, 218.
Bernard, St, 147. Threatens and affrights the Duke of
Guienne, ib,
Bourdeaux, Council of, 171,
BtfDA, ditto, ib.
Bengal — interpreters, 191.
Boleyn, Ann, married to HenryVlH. 210. — Beheaded, 212.
Barrenness, one caufe of polygamy among the patriarchs, j
276.
$
c
(ELEMENT, his two epiftles, 5.
ji , a great favourer of celibacy, 6.
■ > of Alexandria, blames fecond marriages, 10.
Cyprian held 'virginity to be neareft the ftate of martyr*
dom> and much more excellent than marriage, 12, 13.
Constantine encourages celibacy, 14.
Cyril of Jerufakm, 15.
Carthage, firil Council of, 27.
other Councils of, 28, 29, 46.
Chrysostom; St. 33.
■ — his lyes and blafphemy with refpeft to
marriage, 34, 35.
Cjele.stine, St. Bifhop of Rome, 48,
Concubines allowed in the Church, 30.
Chalcedon,
t N
Chalcedon, Council of, c.
Clermont, ditto, 70, III.
COLUMBANUS, St. 75.
Constantinople, Council of, 81.
Chrodegand, St. 85.
Charlemagne, Emperor, 86.
Cologne, Council of, 96, 221.
Coblentz, ditto, 106.
Coyaco, ditto, 139.
Cass el, in Ireland, ditto, 1 53.
Charitopula Manuel, Patriarch, 165.
Chateau Gonthier, Council of, 167.
Cognac, ditto, 169, 170.
Compeigne, ditto, 178.
Colen, ditto, 179, 184.
Concubinage, abolilhed and perfecuted, 189.
Concueinaries condemned, 248. — allowed, 261.
Cleves, Ann of, 213.
Cromwell, difgraced, beheaded, 213.
Cajetan, Cardinal, 234.
Cornelius Agrippa, 235.
Cochl^eus, Johannes, 238.
Concubinage, farther confidered, 277— 84. Probable rea-
fon of its abolition and condemnation, 281. Miiclnefs aris-
ing therefrom, ib.
Concessional quoted, 292, n. 303, n.
Ceremony, marriage, compared to bonds and other fecuri-
ties, 309 — 315. Ought to be enforced by the feverell
laws, ib.
Church, the word explained, 336. Ditto as relative to the
Church of Rome, 338 — 9. Marriage changed by the
Church, 340.
Canterbury, Archbifhop of, his licence for marriages, 346.
Creed, the author's on the Subjects in this treatife, 352 — 6.
DIONYSIUS the Areopagite, his works a forgery, 4f
Didymus of Alexandria , 14.
Dowzy, fecond Council of, 95.
Dunstan, St. 107.
his infolence to an Earl, ib.
— takes the Devil by the nofe, io3.
Damien, Peter, Biffiop of Oflia, 123.
Decretal, 146.
Dominican and Francifcan Fryars , the frit Inquifitors, 177.
Defender of the Faith — original of that title, 200.
t> d 3 E EUSEBIUS
h a
* x.
E
EUSEBIUS of Co/an*, 14.
Ephraim, St. of Syria, 15.
Epiphanius, St. 22.
Eliberis, Council of, 22.
■ - decrees again ft /r/V/fo' marriage, 259.
Ewnodius, Biftiop of Panjia, 55.
Epaone, Council of, 67.
Eligius, St. 76.
Egara, Council of, jj.
Eugenius III. Pope, 148.
Ernulphus, Bifhop of Rocbejlar, 150.
Error, Herefy, and Scbifm, ecclefiafucal fcare-cronus, 181.
Erasmus — his colloquies cenfured, 223.
— — an account of him, 226 — 32.
Ecclesiastical courts, 284. Their power of excommu-
nication dangerous, 285. Consequences thereof, 287, & feq.
Episcopacy, and Prcjbytery — difputes about, 337, n.
Experiments made for the improvement of God's laws, 356.
F
FULGENTIUS, ST. 56.
Fulcus, Archbimop of Rheims, iiq.
Fuleert, St. Bifhop of Cbartres, 11 1.
France, Councils held in, 133.
Frederic II. Emperor, favours and protects the Inquijition,
*77-fl-
Faber, John, maintains that a doctrine of the Church is not
to be abolilhed by allegations out of the fcriptures, 205.
Fisher, Bifhop of Rochejler, 235.
Franciscus de Victoria, 237.
Fornication, affinity by, considered, 244—5.
(?
EGORY, St. Nazianzen, 19.
writes a poem in praife of celibacy ■, 19.
Gregory, St. Nyssen, fpeaks out on the fubjeft of a neio
taw, 19. ^
Gelasius, Bifhop of Rome, 52.
Gregory, St. furnamed the Great, 62.
■ — fends Aujlin the Monk into England, 63*
■ anfwers Aujlin\ queftions, 64.
Gerunda, Council of, 66.
Godfathers and Godmothers, nan-defcriptst $5, n.
Gregory 11. and III. 84.
Germany, Council o; under Carkman, Sy.
Guitmond,
I N D E X.
Guitmono, Archbifhop of A-verft, writes againft Betengert
Garth, Dr. quoted, 148.
Gregory X. Pope, 165.
Gildas, a writer of the 6th Century, 199.
■ his account of the Englijh Bifhops, ib.
Gaufridus Boussardus, 233.
H
HILARY, 14.
Holt, Ch. J. his faying of an Herald, 47, n.
Hilary, St. Bifhop of Arks, 51.
. Bifhop of Rome, 52.
If or ace's ftory of Prometheus quoted and applied, 68,
Hildebrand, or Gregory VII. 116.
Hildebert, Bifhop of Mans, 149.
Hugh, Archbifhop of Roan% 151.
Henry VIII. takes away the Pope's power in England, 187.
Pulls down monafteries, ib. Marries his brother's widow,
208. The Pope's difpenfation thereon, ib. This mar-
riage protelled again ft, ib.
Howard, Katherine, 214. Beheaded, ib.
Hill, Richard, Efq; letter to, 366.
I
INNOCENT I- Pope, 36.
Jerome, St. a great extollerof virginity, 38.
his character, 39, and n.
Isidore, St. Pelusiota, 47.
. ■ — his thoughts on the polygamy of the Patriarchs. ib»
Justinian, Emperor, 57.
John, St. furnamed Climacus, 61.
Isidore, St. 75.
John, St. Damafcene, 85.
John VIM. Pope, 101.
Ivo, Bifhop of Chartres, 140.
__ — his directions about a prieft, who had ufed other cere-
monies and words than were prelcribed in the farm of mar«
riage, 141.
■ his idea of fornication, 142.
Innocent III. Pope, 157.
IV. Pope, 164.
Inquisition, origin of, 175.
Julius JI. grants a difpenfation for the marriage of
Henry VIII. with his brother's widow, 208.
Jgnorance of the Original Scriptures defended, 224. By
the Papijls, and by the Fanatic; of the lail Century, 225.
Jerome,
INDEX.
Jerome, an horrid faying of his on the fubject of marriage,
230.
Jews, hardened in part by prattices of Civilians, 273 — 4.
How thefe differ as to polygamy and concubinage, 279, n.
Their ways of con trading marriage, 315.
KATHERINE's, St. frill a convent, 213, n.
Knaves, chut cbmcn have been the greateft of all others,
and why, 335.
L
LAODICEA, Council of, 26.
Leslie, Mr. his faying of Madame Bourignon, 35, n.
Leo, St. Pope, 48,
denies concubines to be wives, and fays they may be caft
off, 49, 50.
Lucius Char'nus, his horrible blaffhemy againft the God
of the Old Tettament, 65.
Lerida, or Ilerda, Council of, 6$,
Lyons, ditto, 73.
Leo, Emperor, his quarrel with Nicholas the Patriarch, ioi,
Leo VII. Pope, 104.
Lanfranc, Archbifhop of Canterbury, 115. A bitter ene*
my to Berenger, 112.
Latins and Greeks, their foolifh difputes, 122.
Limoges, Council of, 132.
Liseux, ditto, 134.
London, ditto, 138, 153, 154, 168, 171, 180.
Lateran, ditto, 147, 155, 156, 166.
Ic mbard, Peter, 151. Finds out /even facraments> ib. 262*
L'isle, Council of, 168, 172.
Langeis, ditto, 171.
Lambeth, ditto, 181.
Lollards, 181. Their doctrine of marriage, 243. %
Law of Mc/es, different from the laws of Chrijiians, 183, n,
Lailier, feverelv perfecute?, 185.
Luther rifes in Germany, 187, 192.
Lawyers, in Cent. XVI. their definition of marriage, 190.
Luther's three pofitions concerning matrimony, 193. Con-
demned by the divines at Paris, ib. Is abufed by his ad-
verfaries, 194. Protected by the Eleclor of Saxony, and
concealed in a cafde, 196. Many ecclefiaftics marry in con-
fequence of Luther^ teaching, 197. His opinion of cathe-
dral*.^ collegiate churches, 198. Marries Catherine Bora,
207.
Louvai^h, Vnhmrfity, its divines confulted, 217.
Latomus,
9
I N D E X.
Latomus, Jacobus, 236.
Lyes, a clutter of, feleclted from the canons of the Church of
Rome relative to marriage, 250 — 1.
Locke, Mr. quoted on affociation of ideas, 306—7.
M
MEATJX, Bifhop of, perfecutes Du Pin, 5.
Minutius Felix, 12.
Methodius, Bifhop of Olympus, 13,
Mhscon, Council of, 73.
Metz, ditto, 91, 93, 96.
Mentz, ditto, g^, 96, 136, 167, 223.
Melphi, ditto, 120,
Mapes, Walter, Archdeafljh of Oxford, 128. His verfea
on the Pope's forbidding priejrs' marriage, 129.
Mice will not gnatv the conjecraied bread, 113. The con-
trary allowed, 165.
Mathurins, divines afTembled at, 223.
Marriage, fecond, condemned, and not allowed the prieftly
benediclion, 260. Ceremony Popijb, 265. Hcttentots, 266.
Preferable to the Popijb, and why, 260.
Mitylene, cuftom at with regard to marriage, 317.
Magistrate, ftory of one, 326 — 331. Ought to have ju-
rifdi&ion over marriage as a civil contract, 341.
Minors, their marriages vacated, 345,
Mahomet, by whom fet up, 34.7, An emblem of the
Chrijiians fetting up the Pope, ib.
N
NEO-CJESAREA, Council of, 24, 25.
Nice, Council of, 26.
Ditto, 91.
Nantes, ditto, 98.
Nicholas, I. Pope, 99.
Nismes, Council of, 122.
Nccarol, ditto, 179.
Narbonne, ditto, 180.
Nuremb-rg, diet of, 200. The Pope's meiTage to it, ib.
The anfwer, 201. Sends a memorial of an hundred grie-
vances to the Pope, 203.
Numa Pompiiius pretends to receive Jbis laws from the God-
defs Egeria, 316.
O ORIGEN,
I N D E X*
O
ORIGEN, 12.
Orange, Council of, 53.
Orleans, ditto, 66, 70, 71.
Oxford, ditto, 167, 184.
Otaheite, inhabitants of, have little notion of marriage-
ceremony, 320. Compared with the Chrijiians, ib. k 324,
331— 333-
P
PELAGIUSH. Pope, 61.
Polygamy forbidden, 94, 100, 101, 275.
Paris, Council of, 78, 166, 184.
Pavia, ditto, 93, 115.
Polyeucta, Patriarch, 103.
, quarr«ls with the Emperor, 105.
Poictiers, Council of, 119.
. , Count of, parts from his wife, 120.
Paschal II. Pope, 146.
Peter of Blois, Archdeacon of Bath, 151.
— . — , Bifhop of Exeter, his canons > 172.
Presburg, Council of, 178.
Palenza, ditto, 180.
Purgatory, 165.
Press, liberty of, propofed to be taken from the Lutherans t
202.
Parr, Catherine, 215.
Paris, divines of, compofe articles of faith, 217.
Philosophers, their prejudices again/l marriage, imbibed
by the Chrijiians, 259. Have holden all manner of abfur-
dities, 319.
Pope, inltance of one fmartly reproved, 339, n.
Q.
JJAKER, obferves on our form of matrimony, 26$,
268, 300.
R
R
OME and Milan, Councils of againft Jovinian, 27*
Rome, Council of, under Innocent I. 45.
Rheims, ditto, 78, 133, 146.
Rome, ditto, under Gregory II. 87,
, under Zachary, 88.
, under Leo IV. 94.
Robert, King of Frame— difpute about hk marriage with
Bertha, 105.
Ratharius*
INDEX.
Ratharius, Bifhop of Verona, no,
Rome, feveral Councils of, 116.
Rouen, ditto, 134, 135.
Ravenna, ditto, 172, 179.
Raymond, Count of Thouloufe, perfecuted for protecting the
Albigenfes, 177.
Ratisbon, Diet of, 215. AfTembly at, 206.
Ritual, Popifi, relative to marriage, 296 — 7.
SIEGE againft the Old Teftament begun, 16, and n.
Siricius, Pope, makes laws for the celibacy of the
clergy, 20.
Saracosa, Council of, 27.
Symmachus, Pope, 55.
Sevil, Council of, 78.
Stephen II. Pope, 86.
Soissons, Council of, 2g.
Scotus, his book burnt, 112.
Selingenstadt, Council of, 135.
Sawmur, ditto, 170.
Saltzburch, ditto, 173, 184.
Senlis, ditto, 180.
Sens, ditto, 185, 219.
Seymour, Jane, 212.
Selden, Mr. one of the AfTembly of Divines, 225.
Shakespeare — Much ado about nothing, quoted, 278, nm
TERTULLIAN, condemns fecond marriages, 1 1 ,
Timothy of Alexandria, 20.
Toledo, Council of, 29, 69, 8o, 81, 179, 184.
Tours, ditto, 55, 72, 74, 134, 168.
Theodorus of Canterbury , 76.
Tullium, or Toul, Council of, 94.
Troyes, ditto, 95.
Tribur, ditto, 96.
Transubstantiation, difputes about, in — 15. How
affirmed by, St. Chryfofiom, 36.
Trent, Council of, 238 — 249.
Turkish Spy, quoted, 272.
V u
VALENCE, Council of, 26.
Verberie, ditto, 89.
VER NEVILLE, dtttO, 90.
V* - N N A ,
INDEX,
Vienna, ditto, 96.
Verses again ft /r/V/?/ marriage, 127.
Valladolid, Council of, 179.
Uxbridge, difputes at, 337, n.
Varmiense, Cardinal, abfents himfelf from the council of
Trent, when the decree was made to vacate clandeftine
marriages, 344.
Virgil's account of the Cretan labyrinth, 357.
W
WORMS, Council of, 94.
Waldenses, or Vandois, 173,
Waldensis, Thomas, 182.
Wolsey, Cardinal, wants to make a quarrel between the
Emperor and Henry VIII. 209.
Wheatley on Common Prayer quoted, 245 — 46, 249, 250.
Wickliffites endeavour to get their doctrine approved by
Parliament , 269, n.
Wn s and Teftaments, not originally of ecclefiaftical jurif-
diuion, 292, n.
Women, inhumanly treated by the law of England, 320*
Inftances thereof 321 — 325. By the ecclefiailical courts,
V Y
1 ORK, Synod of, 155, 181.
ZACHARY, Pope, 84.
Zuinglius makes great progrefs in Switzerland, 204.
His reply to John Faber, 205. Prefents a petition to the
Bijkop of Gcnftance to allow priefts' marriage, 205.
# 1
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